Two citizens of Iran and Sweden have been released in a prisoner exchange conducted by Oman. After spending two years in Iranian captivity, European Union diplomat Floderus said that he has faced hell on earth.
European Union diplomat and Swedish citizen Floderus has been released after 2 years from Iranian captivity. Floderus said after his release that it is like a dream and I cannot believe it. His release has been done through a prisoner exchange, Johan Floderus and another Swedish citizen have been released in exchange for Iran’s Saeed Azizi and Hamid Noori.
Saeed Azizi and Hamid Noori were arrested in Stockholm for their role in the 1988 mass killings in Iran. Floderus was arrested from Tehran airport in April 2022. According to news agency AP, he was then returning from a holiday with his friends.
Nu har Johan Floderus och Saeed Azizi landat på svensk mark och äntligen fått återförenas med sina nära och kära. Tillsammans med deras familjer tog jag och utrikesministern emot dem på flygplatsen.
— SwedishPM (@SwedishPM) June 15, 2024
Välkomna hem till Sverige! 🇸🇪 pic.twitter.com/kbuAxKGcEF
What did Floderus say after his release?
In a statement given to the Swedish media, Floderus said, ‘After two long years, I am finally a free man, reunited with my family, fiancée and will now be able to get married. The dream of meeting my loved ones again and living my life freely again, which I did not dare to believe, has come true today.’
Sweden’s news outlet Expressen tabloid posted a video of Floderus on Saturday. In which he is proposing to his fiancée on one knee outside the airport. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson is seen standing in the background, let us tell you that the Prime Minister of Sweden himself had come to receive Floderus at the airport. Describing his two years of imprisonment, Floderus said that he has faced ‘hell on earth’.
Oman brokered the deal
The exchange of prisoners has been mediated by Oman. Oman has long been working as a mediator between Iran and Western countries. This prisoner exchange has taken place during Eid al-Adha, a Muslim holiday in which prisoners are usually released during this month. Iran has arrested Western citizens several times in the past to secure the release of its own citizens.