Iran said on Sunday that the three American hikers arrested last July near the Iraq border were spies and demanded the U.S. propose a prisoner swap to secure their release, Reuters reports.
Iran’s Intelligence Minister Heyder Moslehi called on the U.S. to make a humanitarian gesture to Iranians before there can be any talk of an eventual exchange for three detained hikers, according to a report Sunday by the ISNA news agency.
“What Iran did was a humanitarian gesture,” Moslehi said of a brief visit to Tehran by the mothers of Shane Bauer, 27, Sarah Shourd, 31, and Josh Fattal, 27, Americans held for nearly 10 months.
Full story: FOXNews.com – Iran Demands U.S. Propose Prisoner Swap for Three U.S. Hikers Labeled ‘Spies’