Iran’s approach to American hostages has been disturbingly transactional, treating them as a “profitable product”, with the Islamic takeover of Iran being a foundation for this troubling practice. A significant shift occurred during the Obama and Biden administrations, marked by the payment of enormous ransoms for hostages. This approach, unfortunately, has led to an ongoing cycle of hostage-taking by Iran.
A revealing statement from a high-ranking political strategist and Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps officer, Hassan Abbasi, underscores Iran’s intention to kidnap hostages and demand “blood money” from the United States. Abbasi highlighted the financial gains Iran reaps from detaining individuals like Jason Rezaian, stating that the US pleas for their release result in significant payments to the Iranian government. The chilling proposal suggests that Iran should regularly take 10 to 20 Americans hostage per month, demanding substantial ransoms amounting to billions of dollars.
The recent case of hostages and ransom payments under the Biden administration has sparked concerns. Despite efforts to portray these payments as “humanitarian aid,” it’s clear that the funds provided by Iran’s Qatari allies will inevitably support terrorism and the nuclear program. This questionable approach echoes the earlier questionable practices during the Obama administration, which involved illegal ransom payments.
The Obama-Biden history with Iran further raises eyebrows. Notably, Biden, a long-time ally of the Iran Lobby, has shown a series of questionable stances. For example, he proposed sending a “no strings attached” check of US$200 million to Iran after September 11 and has displayed a willingness to appease Iran’s nuclear ambitions. He even voted against designating the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization and suggested impeachment for President Bush if he took action against Iran.
The 2020 election also had Iran involved in a false flag operation, attempting to hack sites reporting election results by posing as Republicans, making Iran the second-largest enemy state to intervene in the election. The apparent quid pro quo in exchange for these actions was the Biden administration’s offering of indirect sanctions relief and entrusting the Iran Lobby with restarting the Iran Deal, potentially enabling Iran’s nuclear program.
To put an end to this cycle of hostage-taking, the United States could halt ransom payments and make further travel to Iran a criminal offense. This would disrupt the troubling flow of funds to Iran, currently facilitated through the dubious arms-for-hostages chain, and could ultimately serve the interests of peace and security.
