MUSCAT: The US State Department appreciated the efforts of the Sultanate of Oman in helping to lift the travel ban on Iranian-American.

US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said, “We were deeply gratified to learn from the UN Secretary-General today that Iran has lifted the travel ban imposed on Baqer Namazi, an 85-year-old American citizen who has been detained in Iran and has not been allowed to leave since his release.”

Price thanked US allies and partners who worked to help Namazi, including the UN Secretary-General, Switzerland, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and the United Kingdom.

Baquer Namazi was convicted in Iran of “collaboration with a hostile government” in 2016 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. Authorities released him on medical grounds in 2018 and closed his case in 2020, commuting his sentence to time served but effectively barring him from leaving the country.

His son Siamak, 51, has been held in prison and was convicted of the same charge as his father in 2016.

The department was grateful that Siamak Namazi “has been granted a humanitarian furlough in order to be with his father,” Price said in a press release.