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Floderus released from Iran – exchanged for Hamid Noury

by AI | 17.Jun 2024 | Europe in brief AI

Sweden has pardoned and exchanged the life-sentenced Iranian Hamid Noury for the Swede Johan Floderus, who was captured by Iran. It has led to joy – and protests.

Swedish and exiled Iranians hold a protest outside the Ministry for Foreign Affairs on Sunday organized by the United Associations for a Free Iran (FFFI). They protest against Sweden's release of the life-sentenced Iranian Hamid Noury who was pardoned and released in a prisoner exchange with Iran where EU official Johan Floderus had been imprisoned. Photo: Jessica Gow/TT

The Iranian Hamid Noury, sentenced to life in Sweden, was exchanged over the weekend with the captured Swede Johan Floderus and another Swede captured in Iran.

Hamid Noury was sentenced to life in prison in Sweden for his involvement in mass executions in an Iranian prison in the late 1980s.

Sweden has never before conducted an international prisoner exchange.

Several observers believe that Johan Floderus was arrested as a consequence of Noury’s conviction.

The 33-year-old Swedish EU official from Western Sweden has worked closely with Sweden’s EU Commissioner Ylva Johansson. In the spring of 2022, he traveled to Iran with friends on what, according to the family, was a holiday trip.

He was arrested and accused of spying for Israel and “spreading corruption in the world.”

At 9:20 PM on Saturday, the plane with the two Swedish citizens landed in Sweden.

The reason the Swedish government decided to release Hamid Noury in exchange for Floderus and the other Swede, 61-year-old Saeed Azizi, was, according to Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, that long-standing talks with Iran had yielded no results. To make the exchange possible, the government pardoned Noury.

At least one Swede remains – Ahmadreza Djalali, who has been imprisoned since 2016. There has been strong criticism that he is not included in the exchange. However, according to Kristersson, there were no conditions at all to get Djalali released.

(June 15)