An Iranian American Jewish man from Long Island has been sentenced to prison in Iran for traveling to Israel 13 years ago to celebrate his son’s bar mitzvah, The New York Times reports.
According to family members, Kamran Hekmati, a 70-year-old jeweler and resident of Great Neck, was arrested in Tehran earlier this year and later sentenced to four years in prison for violating a law that bans Iranians from visiting Israel. Hekmati, who holds dual U.S.-Iranian citizenship, had returned to Iran in May for a short visit and was detained in July at Tehran’s Evin Prison.
In late August, Iran’s Revolutionary Court convicted him without allowing legal representation, family members told the Times. His sentence was later reduced to two years, though no court date for his appeal has been set. Relatives say they are pleading for his release on humanitarian grounds, citing his deteriorating health and ongoing battle with aggressive bladder cancer.
The case marks a rare instance of Iran imprisoning a Jewish dual citizen solely for visiting Israel for personal, religious reasons. Rights advocates and Jewish organizations have condemned the arrest as politically motivated, saying it highlights Iran’s pattern of detaining foreign nationals and using them as bargaining chips in diplomatic negotiations.
“The Iranian regime has a long history of unjustly detaining other countries’ citizens,” the U.S. State Department said in a statement quoted by the Times, calling on Tehran to “release these individuals immediately.”
Hekmati, who owns a jewelry business in Manhattan’s Diamond District, is described by relatives as a devoted family man, active synagogue member, and proud Iranian American who maintained deep ties to his heritage. “It’s heartbreaking,” one cousin told the Times. “The country he loved so much is now holding him hostage.”
Iran is believed to be holding at least four American citizens at present, including Hekmati and several journalists, according to rights groups. His detention comes amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Jerusalem following recent military exchanges.
For Long Island’s Iranian Jewish community — one of the largest outside of Iran — Hekmati’s case has become a chilling reminder of the risks facing dual nationals and a test of whether quiet diplomacy can secure his freedom.
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