Iran Asked to Free Remaining Hikers
The New York Times reports:
Sarah Shourd, a teacher released last week after 410 days in an Iranian prison, said Sunday after her arrival back in the United States that she felt only “one-third free” because the two other American hikers arrested with her remain incarcerated in Tehran.
Ms. Shourd, her cropped, dark brown hair no longer shrouded underneath the purple head scarf that was mandatory for her fleeting public appearances in Iran, told a news conference in New York that her joy upon leaving Tehran was tempered by the fact that she left without her fiancé, Shane Bauer, and their friend Josh Fattal, both 28.
“My disappointment at not sharing that moment with Shane and Josh was crushing,” said Ms. Shourd, 32, reading from a prepared statement and declining to answer any questions.
“I stand before you today only one-third free,” she continued in a calm voice, her mother, Nora, constantly fighting tears behind her. “That is the last thing that Josh said to me before I walked through the prison doors. Josh and Shane felt only one-third free at that moment and so did I.”
Mr. Fattal had gone to visit the couple, who were working and studying in Damascus, Syria. They took a trip to Iraqi Kurdistan and went on a hike to Ahmed Awa waterfall. Iranian security forces detained them that day. They were accused of crossing the Iran-Iraq border.
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