The wife of imprisoned pastor Saeed Abedini says the United States must secure the release of all American prisoners from Iran — not just her husband — before it hammers out a definitive nuclear arms deal.
"I'm hoping they're really careful with this new deal. I do hope it's preconditioned in any deal … to get Americans out," Naghmeh Abedini said Friday on "The Steve Malzberg Show" on
Newsmax TV.
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"[There's] an ex-Marine, an ex-FBI agent, a reporter … they're holding a lot of Americans hostage. Releasing them is the least Iran can do."
Saeed, a former Muslim who converted to Christianity in 2000, met and wed Naghmeh, a U.S. citizen, and settled in Idaho. But during a trip back to Iran, he was arrested and sentenced to eight years in prison for preaching Christianity, allegedly undermining Iranian national security.
Naghmeh and her two young children Rebekka, 7, and her brother, Jacob, 6, recently met with President Barack Obama in Boise to discuss the family's agony and what the U.S. is doing to secure the pastor's release.
"My son [asked] the president if he could help bring his daddy home for his birthday … That was the highlight of the meeting for me … the emotional part of the meeting.
"I'm hoping that he is doing everything he can to bring Saeed home so Jacob won't have to go another birthday without his dad. It was very emotional to have a plea … 'Can you please bring my daddy home?'
"I've been praying for [the president's] human side, his father side to come out and think about all the birthdays [my husband] has missed simply because of his faith as a Christian."
Naghmeh told Steve Malzberg that her husband continues to suffer mentally and physically as he sits locked away in what she calls the "worst prison" in Iran.
But Saeed was given a small ray of hope, Naghmeh said, when his father visited him behind bars to tell him Obama has promised to work on his release.
"He was encouraged … that he's not forgotten. That's the No. 1 thing that a prisoner struggles with — that may be forgotten [and think], I'm going to spend the rest of my life in this prison.'"
It was only a year ago that Naghmeh feared the worst, when she heard her husband was being brutally tortured behind bars and had suffered internal injuries requiring hospitalization.