Israel
Iran holding 70-year-old Jewish-American jeweller captive following wartime crackdown
The man was visiting family in the country when he was reportedly abducted by security forces
August 4, 2025 14:25
The man was visiting family in the country when he was reportedly abducted by security forces
August 4, 2025 14:25A 70-year-old Jewish jeweller from New York is among a group of at least four US citizens being held captive in Iran, according to the State Department.
Amid the 12-day Israel-Iran war and the related US strike on its nuclear sites in June, the Iranian government arrested 35 Jews accused of having ties to Jerusalem or Washington.
Out of those, two were reported to be US nationals, while at least two more Jewish-Americans have been detained by the regime since last year.
Last month, it was reported by Kan that Iran was holding as many as five US citizens but since then, one has been released.
Three of the remaining detainess are being held in Iranin prisons, while the fourth is not being allowed to leave the country.
According to The New York Times (NYT), the State Department has confirmed that it is “closely tracking” reports of the Americans detained in Iran.
It said: “For privacy, safety, and operational reasons, we do not get into the details of our internal or diplomatic discussions on reported US detainees. We call on Iran to immediately release all unjustly detained individuals in Iran.”
However, details of one of the prisoners has been revealed after rights groups and lawyers spoke to the paper. The man is reported to be a 70-year-old jeweller from New York who was born in Iran before moving to the US over 30 years ago.
He is said to have been visiting relatives in the country when he was abducted by security forces and imprisoned.
Two anonymous senior Iranian officials confirmed his arrest to the NYT as well as that of a woman from California. They have said that the arrests are part of a crackdown on people they believe have links to Israel and the US.
Last month, following the US strikes but prior to reports of new American captives, US President Donald Trump posted on X: "Iran has officially responded to our Obliteration of their Nuclear Facilities with a very weak response, which we expected, and have very effectively countered.
"There have been 14 missiles fired — 13 were knocked down, and 1 was 'set free' because it was headed in a nonthreatening direction.
"I am pleased to report that NO Americans were harmed, and hardly any damage was done.
"Most importantly, they’ve gotten it all out of their 'system' and there will, hopefully, be no further HATE."
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