Obama leaves 4 Americans behind in Iran deal

“The agreement reached between the United States and Iran is ‘unconscionable’ because it leaves Pastor Saeed, a U.S. citizen, behind – imprisoned in Iran because of his Christian faith,” wrote Jay Sekulow, chief counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice.

 

His group has worked extensively to get Saeed Abedini, jailed in Iran since 2012 because of his Christianity, returned home.

 

The plight of three other Americans in captivity in Iran also was ignored in the nuclear discussions, which resulted in an agreement announced Tuesday.

 

“It is unconscionable that the Obama administration would sign a deal with Iran without securing the freedom of Pastor Saeed, who has been imprisoned for nearly three years simply because of his Christian faith,” Sekulow said.

 

President Obama “told the Abedini family face-to-face that he considered the release of Pastor Saeed a ‘top priority,’” Sekulow said.

 

“How could that be a ‘top priority’ when a deal is reached and Pastor Saeed is left behind? What happened today makes a bad deal even worse. We will now focus our attention on convincing Congress to reject this deal.”

 

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