TEHRAN – Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Consular, Parliamentary, and Expatriate Affairs, Vahid Jalalzadeh, has vehemently denounced the recent arrests of Iranian nationals by the United States, accusing the U.S. of engaging in "hostage-taking" and violating international law.

This month, the U.S. detained two Iranian expatriates, alleging they supplied components to unidentified drone manufacturers whose weapons were used by the Iraqi Resistance to target U.S. forces in West Asia.

Jalalzadeh took to X to decry the U.S. actions as "unilateral and inhumane," asserting that the country is using sanctions as a pretext for the wrongful detention of Iranian citizens.

He emphasized Iran's unwavering commitment to defending the rights of its nationals worldwide.

Among those detained is Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, a mechanical engineering graduate from Iran's Sharif University of Technology and the head of a Switzerland-based company that focuses on precision measurement equipment.

He was apprehended at Milan Airport in Italy on December 16 at the request of the U.S. while traveling to Switzerland.

Another Iranian national, Mahdi Mohammadsadeghi, was arrested in Massachusetts in the U.S. around the same time. 

Issa Kameli, Iran's Assistant Foreign Minister and Director General for the Americas Department, echoed Jalalzadeh's sentiments, dismissing the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) allegations against another Iranian national, Mohammad Reza Nouri, as “politically motivated.”

Kameli lambasted the accusations' lack of substantiation, pointing out that they exemplified a wider trend of U.S. judicial overreach.

The U.S. claims that Mohammad Reza Nouri, allegedly affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), orchestrated the 2022 murder of U.S. citizen Stephen Troell in Baghdad as retaliation for the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani.

Nouri remains in Iraq, where he has been arrested and convicted, according to the DOD.

Addressing the situation involving two other Iranian citizens arrested in the U.S. and Italy, Kameli criticized the U.S. judicial system for being weaponized to issue unfounded and politically motivated rulings.

He stated that such actions, often justified by claims of circumventing unilateral U.S. sanctions—which lack legitimacy under international law and contradict established human rights norms—constitute wrongful conduct by the U.S. government and entail its international responsibility.

He reiterated that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as part of its inherent responsibilities, will persistently and vigorously advocate for and protect the rights of Iranian citizens worldwide.