Witness

One thing is for sure

They will come out safely and then they will be in the spot light and can make a few bobs from interviews and exclusive rights to their story. Did they think of that?

DM

What you say makes sense. Perhaps they are using these guys as a chip to exchange "hostages". If it was me I would definitely release these guys after a fine for entering illegally. These kinds of behavior costs a lot in the long run.

Illegal aliens in the US are often mistreated

and detained for months. They are often put together with common criminals, children, even are jailed. There's been 100s of such cases.

And Iranian civilians have been detained in Iraq and even tortured by US troops.

Unless there's abuse or mistreatment going on, Iran has the legal right to address this how it sees fit. I don't discount the possiblity of "political pawns" being used in a chess game. But it takes two to play chess.

Thanks for commenting

Thanks for commenting everyone.

Abarmard--Regarding whether they're really in Evin or not: the AP and other news outlets have reported that they are, and that they have been visited by Swiss diplomats on at least two occasions. Sometimes these news reports are wrong, though, so we'll see...

I agree with you that the hikers' presence in such a sensitive region is indeed suspicious. I don't think they were just tourists. But I also don't think they were spies.

Their families have said they were trying to be freelance reporters. This matches up with what we know they were doing in other areas prior to being captured. So if you ask me, I think they were a couple young people pushing the envelope, trying to make a name for themselves and taking boneheaded risks that they shouldn't have been taking. (In my case, this is the pot calling the kettle black.) That's deserving of punishment for sure. But as I said in my original post, accusing them as being spies and using them as a political football is another thing entirely. And unfortunately it's not the first time the IRI has resorted to such tactics.

Could I be wrong about what they were up to? Sure. Maybe they really were spies--but if so, they some of the absolute worst spies out there. I mean, really, it was broad daylight in a pretty popular hiking area! The CIA has certainly had their share of screw-ups, but this would be taking it to an entirely new level.

Thanks again for weighing in.

DM

I don't buy it

So the hiking trails in Iraq and Iran is exceptionally great that these innocent nature tourists first hang out in the (strangely) "Kordestan" of Iraq, where there are many traces of those separatists, then as eye witness and Iraqis have said, they ignored warninigs about the Iranian border, were told where the borders are, and that they should be careful.

They went inside fully aware. Now what's the deal, intentions, or whatever, no one exactly knows. But I am certainly very suspicious of their presence in that region, area, and crossing Iran. Some more data is needed.

Now more importantly, the Iranian citizens are robbed on the clear day light and no one knows where they are, which is worse than the Iranian regime who captured these visitors!

Finally, I am not sure if they are in Evin Prison.

Thanks for the post.

Thanks DM

Responding to Mr. Siletz:

Responding to Mr. Siletz: Daytime.

News reports indicate they were detained at 1:30 in the afternoon.

........

I am just curious who will be sent to Iran to negotiate the release of the hikers if IRI and US need to negotiate. What will be the conditions for the release? What does IRI want to get from this saga? 

Delaram Banafsheh (Yolanda)

"Cactus in the Desert"

Day or night?

Let's look at this from all sides

There is no question that the criminal Mullahs should not even exist, let alone run the Country into dirt, like they have been doing for the last 30 years.

We also need to remember that the chief criminal Mullah, Khomeni had been protected by CIA for over 30 years in exile until 1979, when he was brought back to Iran by them.

At the same time, the Country is circled by US troops and the US influenced agents who are instructed to create chiaos to give them an excuse.

In this kind of condition, how do you go hiking in that area and not know that you need to make sure you have not crossed the line?

I am pretty sure there is more to this than the stories we have been told by the Government run Media in this Country and also in Iran.

Politics as usual.

Why would anyone with little bit of sense go to a border between Iran and Iraq to climb a f***ing mountain. Was there any other mountain on this earth that would satisfy their climbing urge? No, they had to go to that specific mountain where the two most American loving, friendliest countries/governments are bordering each other.

I think they are part of a biger picture than we are lead to believe. I have no sympathy for  anyone of them. They are either stupid or they were deliberately placed there for some give and takes, in the nuke issue.

Adamheyh bikar

So many places on the face of earth that you can hike and these morons choose mountains between Iran and Iraq! where do they go when they want to go to a beach, to sumalia? Adam bikar va khol o chel to donya ziadeh.....

.......

I agree with you 100% that, the 3 hikers are just like Laura Ling and Euna Lee....IRI wants to bring US to its knees and then release them like Roxana Saberi.......I read in the news that the hotel people in Iraq warned the Americans not to go for the hiking 'cause it is close to the border and the border is not clearly marked.....sometimes Americans are very defiant, they act like they don't have to listen to anyone.....

I believe the 3 Americans will go thru the process like Ms. Saberi, and then IRI will extend the "Islamic compassion" to them and let them go....

Thanks for the article! 

Delaram Banafsheh (Yolanda)

"Cactus in the Desert"