Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian is finally on his way back to the U.S. six days after being freed from prison in Iran. And he has the Post’s owner, billionaire Jeff Bezos, to thank for making possible the last leg of the trip. WaPo reports:
Rezaian and his family had dinner with Bezos on Thursday on an U.S. Army base in Germany, which the 39-year-old reporter had received medical care. Bezos then flew the family home on a private jet, said Post spokeswoman Kristine Coratti Kelly. “Like all of us, he is incredibly happy they are safe and sound,” Kelly said.
Rezaian was arrested by Iranian police in July 2014, a few days after Anthony Bourdain interviewed Rezaian and his wife Yeganeh Salehi for his CNN show Parts Unknown. Rezaian was eventually tried and convicted of espionage charges. He was released last Saturday hours before international sanctions were lifted on Iran.
WaPo’s foreign editor Douglas Jehl snapped this picture with Rezaian and Bezos.