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QUESTION: I would like to begin with a subject that offers a little good news, and the Lord knows that we need it now. There was a breaking story last Thursday about Iran’s release of Michael White who has been in prison for two years. He’s a Navy veteran and he’s either on his way home or he’s there now. Give us the backstory on that release.

SECRETARY POMPEO: It is fantastic news. It’s something that we have been working on for quite some time. Michael White is a Navy veteran. He’d been held for now two years on by the Islamic Republic of Iran, and in the last 24 hours he was released. He’s on his way home. It’ll take a little bit yet to get him back to the United States, but he is out of control of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is a great thing for him and for his family. And our team, led by a fellow named Brian Hook, did remarkable work to secure his release from Iran.

We still, sadly, have others who are held there, and the American people should know that the State Department team and President Trump are focused on securing the release for every American that is wrongfully detained. And we hope the Iranians – and we pray that the Iranians – will make the right decision to let these people who did nothing wrong but are being held unjustly and allow them to return home to their lives and to their families.

QUESTION: What were the charges against Michael White?

SECRETARY POMPEO: So there were a number of charges through time that they had raised, and in each case, much like we see with the so-called justice system there in Iran, they continued to delay and obfuscate what had really taken place, because the Iranians knew the truth: He was an innocent man and remains so. They charged him with things that relate to espionage and others, and this is the nature of what this regime has done. And we hope all nations will join us in calling for every country that holds people on these kinds of false charges and allow these people to come back home.

QUESTION: Is there an easy answer to how many Americans they’re holding now?

SECRETARY POMPEO: There is. It’s a handful that are left there. We’ve been very fortunate. We’ve had others come home before Michael White as well, so we’ve been relatively successful, but we’ve also been very clear we don’t pay for the return of our hostages. And so it is hard diplomatic work to convince the Iranians that it’s the right thing to do. And we are very focused on getting those who are remaining – the handful that the Iranians are still holding – getting them back as quickly as we can.

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