Hikers held by Iran with the exception of Shourd

In July of 2009, 3 people were hiking via Kurdistan, a region composed of parts of Turkey, Iraq and Iran. The name came from the Kurds which is the majority of people who reside there. All of the hikers were accused of being spies and of espionage as they were taken in by the Iranian law enforcement. Authorities promised to release one and then recanted, and now have flip-flopped again and freed Sarah Shourd, one of the hikers. Iranian law enforcement tried to get the United States, who said no, to pay for her release with $500,000. The other hikers remain in custody, one of which is her fiancé.

Hiking with intent to spy

All three captured hikers, Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal, work in the Middle East. Bauer is also Shourd’s fiancé. They picked Kurdistan as a getaway site because it is mostly free of the sectarian conflicts within the southern parts of Iraq. While hiking outside of Zalem, a village in Iraqi Kurdistan, the hikers were detained by the Iranian national police, according to The Nation. It isn’t all that easy to figure out where the border really is. Locals, however, explain that it is common to determine Iranian forces in Iraq.

One hiker freed

The Iranian government said it would release Sarah Shourd to the U.S. government. Of course, this would require $500,000 bail. Days later, the Iranian government recanted. Then, it was announced that Sarah Shourd was being released, on bail, for health reasons, according to CNN. Ever since the 1979 the Swiss have been acting as liaison when Washington and Tehran have no relations. The bail was supposedly deposited into a bank account in Oman. Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal weren’t as lucky. They are still in Iranian custody.

Espionage isn’t likely to be proven

Numerous sources have reported the hikers never even crossed to the Iranian border. People from the area where they were captured have repeatedly said that Iranian police and intelligence operatives openly and notoriously cross the border and detain individuals. Any judge should be able to take 10 minutes to recognize a trespassing charge. Seems like like the only reason the government would keep the individuals detained would be for political reasons.

Discover more information on this subject

The Nation

thenation.com/article/36562/us-hikers-were-seized-iraq?page=,

CNN

cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/09/14/iran.detained.american/