Iran sentenced Jewish Iranian-American Kamran Hekmati on charges of traveling to Israel 13 years ago to celebrate his son's bar mitzvah, The New York Times reported on Thursday, citing members of the Hekmati family.
Hekmati, a 70-year-old resident of Long Island, New York, has been held in Evin Prison since July, after traveling to Iran in May, his family have said in interviews.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Court sentenced Hekmati to four years imprisonment in late August, according to the report, adding that this was reduced to two years in September.
Hekmati was born in Iran and emigrated to the US when he was 13 years old. He still holds an Iranian passport, which he used to enter the Islamic Republic in May, NYT reported.
Hekmati is the first known case in recent years which has seen Iran target a Jewish dual-US citizen for traveling to Israel for personal reasons.
Hekmati had previously made several trips to Iran, both alone and with family members, NYT reported, noting that he never experienced any issues in the past. However, his recent May arrival came amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran ahead of June's Operation Rising Lion when the Israel Air Force conducted airstrikes on Iranian military and nuclear targets.
Security forces stopped Hekmati at the airport in Tehran as he tried to leave the country, confiscating his passport, and demanding access to his social media and mobile phone, family members said.
Iranian intelligence officers interrogated him between May and July while he was at a relative's home in Tehran. However, in early July, after a ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Iran, security officials raided the residence, arresting him, family members claimed.
He was charged without the presence of a lawyer, NYT clarified.
Iran does not recognize dual citizenship of its nationals.
A family lawyer appealed the sentencing, but there is no court date, the family have said.
Family hopes for release on humanitarian grounds due to illness, non-political motives
The family is hoping that Iranian authorities will release Hekmati on humanitarian grounds as he is not involved in politics, visited Israel for personal family reasons, and is in poor health due to bladder cancer, the report noted.
Iran's mission to the United Nations stated that it will not comment on the case, NYT added.
Rights groups cited in the report note that Iran is holding three other US citizens, namely "journalist Reza Valizadeh, and two women whose identities have not been made public."
The US State Department said it could not comment on cases of US citizens held in Iranian prisons for privacy and security concerns.
“The Iranian regime has a long history of unjustly and wrongfully detaining other countries’ citizens,” the State Department stated, affirming that “Iran should release these individuals immediately.”