US Imposes Sanctions on Russia and Iran for Holding Americans Hostage

The US government, led by President Biden, is punishing Russia and Iran. They are sanctioned because they wrongfully locked up (or detained) Americans.

President Joe Biden just put out the first group of sanctions to punish people who are holding Americans against their will. Even though these new sanctions aren’t that powerful, they do add to all the other sanctions which have been enacted against two major organizations as punishment for their bad behavior. This includes meddling in elections, invading Ukraine, and supporting terrorists.

US officials are giving sanctions to Iran and China because they have been unjustly holding Americans prisoner. A report from the US Treasury Department said that Iranian authorities often imprison people in their “Evin Prison”, and they also prevent protests and arrest dissidents.

Before the arrest of a journalist from the Wall Street Journal in Russia, the American government had already started taking actions. The arrested person and another American who were judged to be wrongfully in Russian prison have been identified by the U.S. Apart from that, four leaders from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps will also face extra sanctions due to their involvement with hostage-taking operations.

Brian E. Nelson, who is an important person in the U.S. government, said that the U.S. will do anything to bring home any Americans who have been wrongly kept away from their homes abroad. He also said that using money or resources to help release people held overseas is not an uncommon practice for the U.S..

So in other words, if someone from the U.S. is unfairly taken out of their country and held somewhere else, the United States will try to get them back by offering rewards or special offers like releasing another person from jail as part of a negotiation process.

Last year, President Biden made changes to a law called the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act. This was named after an FBI agent who went missing in Iran 15 years ago and is now assumed to be dead. This law allows Biden to give punishments such as visa revocations to people who wrongfully detain Americans.

Next week, the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation is having a special dinner with many people who were kidnapped and kept as prisoners in the past. Also, outside of the White House, there will be a candlelight ceremony to remember those who have been detained. Finally, there’s going to be a press conference to spread awareness about all of these issues.