President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Iran has released an American woman who was wrongfully detained in the country for over a year. The woman, identified as Iranian-American citizen Dena Karari, was freed after being held under what her attorney described as bogus espionage charges related to her work with a U.S.-based nonprofit aiding impoverished children in Iran.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump confirmed that Karari was detained in December 2024, during the Biden administration, and was recently allowed to leave Iran. He thanked Tehran for what he called a gesture of goodwill. Karari is now safely outside Iran and in good condition, according to Trump, marking the first time an American has been freed from Iranian custody since 2023.
Karari’s attorney, Jared Genser, released a statement shortly after Trump’s announcement, saying she had been trapped in Iran on bogus charges of collaboration with a hostile state and espionage but is now on her way back to the United States. Genser explained that Karari was targeted after Iranian authorities linked her to the Children of Mehr Foundation, a U.S.-registered nonprofit that provides books, literacy programs, and other humanitarian assistance to impoverished children in rural Iran. Under the Iranian regime, affiliations with U.S.-based organizations operating inside the country are often viewed with suspicion and can lead to accusations of security-related offenses.
Genser clarified that Karari was never formally imprisoned but was effectively held in Iran through a coercive exit ban. She was reportedly interrogated dozens of times by Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security and suffered enormous physical and psychological hardship. Genser urged Iran to drop all remaining charges against those who worked locally in support of the Children of Mehr Foundation, calling them innocent and committed no crimes. He also called on Iran to release all wrongly imprisoned Americans and those subjected to coercive exit bans, as well as all Iranian political prisoners.
Sources previously told Fox News Digital in January 2026 that Iran may have been holding more than eight American citizens and residents in custody, exceeding publicly available data that listed five American hostages in Iran. Two of the current hostages include Kamran Hekmati, a 61-year-old Jewish man held since May 2025, and Reza Valizadeh, a 49-year-old journalist and dual Iranian-American national held since March 2024. A U.S. State Department official previously stated that President Trump is working to secure the release of detained Americans around the world, adding that the Iranian regime has a long history of unjustly detaining other countries’ citizens as hostages for use as political leverage.
According to United Against Nuclear Iran, Tehran detains foreign nationals on vague charges and uses them as bargaining chips to extract concessions from other countries, such as securing the release of frozen financial assets locked up by international sanctions. Iran has frequently targeted individuals who hold both American and Iranian citizenship, as Tehran does not recognize dual nationality and often treats dual citizens solely as Iranian nationals, limiting their access to U.S. consular assistance.
During the most recent major prisoner exchange in September 2023, the U.S. secured the release of five Americans who had been detained in Iran for years. In exchange, the U.S. approved the transfer of $6 billion in frozen funds. The release of Karari comes amid ongoing military confrontations between Washington and Tehran, with Trump recently declaring that a ceasefire with Iran is over after Iranian attacks triggered a massive U.S. response. The development highlights the complex dynamics between the two nations, where humanitarian gestures and hostage diplomacy intersect with broader geopolitical tensions.
Karari’s release has been welcomed by her family and legal team, who expressed relief that she is now safe. Genser emphasized that the ordeal underscores the risks faced by dual nationals and humanitarian workers in Iran. He reiterated calls for the release of all remaining American detainees, urging the international community to pressure Tehran to end its practice of using hostages for political leverage. The Trump administration has signaled that securing the freedom of Americans held abroad remains a top priority, with ongoing efforts to address the cases of those still in Iranian custody.