Exclusive: American held for 8 years in notorious Iranian prison tells of ordeal | CNN

Siamak Namazi speaks exclusively to CNN 's Christiane Amanpour for the first time since his release.

Namazi was the longest-held Iranian-American prisoner, excluded from three separate deals that freed other detained Americans during the Obama and Trump administrations.

He was released along with four other Americans , all designated by the United States as wrongfully detained, in a deal between the US and Iran that also saw the unfreezing of around $6 billion of Iranian assets.

The most dominant feeling that I have is gratitude particularly (towards) President Joe Biden , who made a very difficult choice and struck the deal, he says.

Iranian -Iranian prisoner says he endured eight months of solitary confinement and beatings.

He says he was blindfolded and beaten, but the worst was the “humiliation,” he says.

Namazi says he saw other prisoners being released in deals between the US and Iran on three separate occasions despite, he claims, the US government being fully aware of the abuse.

In September 2023 , Namazi was released along with four other Iranian dual nationals.

Namazi says he was not debriefed by the US government on his many interactions with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard .

He feels there is a lack of support structure once he arrives in the U.S. Namazi : "I would really love to shake President Biden ’s hand one day ".