The Iran Project - Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations confirmed that five Iranian nationals illegally detained in the US on charges of circumventing US sanctions will soon be released in exchange for the release of five Americans held in the Islamic Republic.

The mission stated that some of the detainees will remain in the United States after their release, while others will return to Iran.

The individuals who will be released are Mehrdad Moein Ansari, Kambiz Attar Kashani, Reza Sarhangpour Kofrani, Amin Hassanzadeh, and Kaveh Lotfollah Afrasiabi.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi revealed in an interview with NBC News that the prisoner exchange process will be completed as planned and that the American prisoners in Iran are in good health and will soon return home.

The prisoner exchange agreement was officially announced on August 10 after two years of indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington.

As a gesture of goodwill, Tehran has transferred four American detainees from prison to house arrest, joining a fifth American who was already under house arrest.

The discussions, mediated by Qatar, also included the issue of billions of dollars worth of Iranian assets that have been blocked overseas since 2018 when the United States unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and reinstated sanctions against Iran.