Three American Hikers are being charged by Iranian law enforcement under the suspicion that they were conducting reconnaissance along the border. The three hikers: Shane Bauer, 27 years old, Sarah Shourd, 31, and Josh Fattal, 27 were all arrested back in late July for illegally crossing the Iranian border from Northern Iraq.
Their families denied the spying allegation in a joint statement Monday.
"The allegation that our loved ones may have been engaged in espionage is untrue," the statement said. "It is entirely at odds with the people Shane, Sarah and Josh are and with anything that Iran can have learned about them since they were detained." -WSJ
I was unaware that Berkley was now cranking out international spies.
The U.S. continues to implore Tehran to release the three hikers out of goodwill. Hillary Clinton said there was no evidence for Iran to prosecute the Hikers during a press release held in Berlin.
These charges are clearly a strategic move by the Iranian government to use American citizens as a bargaining chip to alter the nuclear deal agreed upon in Geneva. On Monday, negotiations concerning Iran’s possession and exportation of low-enriched uranium came to a halt. In case you were wondering, the IAEA states that it only takes 1,200 kilos of low enriched Uranium to build an ample bomb.
Shortly after the negotiation break, a press release notified the world that the Hikers would be under investigation for espionage. The accusations brought against the three Americans are serious, Iranian lawyers state that if they are found guilty, the result could be 10 or more years in prison. Iranian prison is not exactly a walk in the park either.
"These sorts of situations are obviously exploited by the officials of the Islamic republic," said Hamid Dabashi, a professor of Iranian studies at Columbia University. "They will use and manipulate the hikers to see how it can best serve their interests." -WSJ
It should be obvious to the world, that Iran is using these hikers as leverage for their nuclear negotiations. The same situation occurred in North Korea in late August. A country detains civilians, under the premise that they are spying on the country to gain media attention.
Iran is holding up a big sign saying: “Everyone look at us!”
The charges are a desperate measure by a country that knows it does not have a leg to stand on. As soon as the negotiations are over don’t be surprised to see the media frenzy ensue upon the release of the detained hikers.