The U.S. says he was a willing defector who changed his mind and decided to board a plane home from Washington.
Shahram Amiri was embraced by his family – including his tearful 7-year-old son – after arriving in Tehran in the latest spectacle of a puzzling series of events that left Iran and Washington with starkly different accounts. Amiri flashed a V-for-victory sign as he stepped into the terminal.
Iran has portrayed the return of Amiri as a blow to American intelligence services that were desperate for inside information on Iran's nuclear program. Iran has sought maximum propaganda value – allowing journalists to cover Amiri's return and having a top envoy from Iran's Foreign Ministry on hand to greet him.
Washington described the 32-year-old Amiri as someone who reached out to U.S. officials, but have offered few other details.
Speaking to journalists after a flight via Qatar, Amiri repeated his earlier claims that he was snatched while on a pilgrimage last year in the Saudi holy city of Medina and carried off to the United States.
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