Reuters: U.S. President Barack Obama said on Sunday he was "deeply concerned" for the safety of imprisoned Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi and urged Tehran to free her, saying he was confident she was not involved in spying.
PORT OF SPAIN, April 19 (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama said on Sunday he was "deeply concerned" for the safety of imprisoned Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi and urged Tehran to free her, saying he was confident she was not involved in spying.
"Obviously I'm gravely concerned with her safety and well being," Obama told a news conference in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, where he was attending the Fifth Summit of the Americas.
"We are working to make sure that she is properly treated and to get information about the disposition of her case. She is an American citizen and I have complete confidence that she was not engaging in any sort espionage," he added. "She is an Iranian-American who was interested in the country which her family came from and it is appropriate for her to be treated as such and be released."
He said Washington would be in touch with Tehran about the case through Swiss intermediaries. (Reporting by David Alexander, editing by Jackie Frank)
