The State Department has acknowledged it is investigating reports of the arrest of an Iranian-American citizen in Iran, amid renewed tensions between the two countries. These tensions, which have historically seen Iran detain Westerners as leverage, have been reignited following last month’s Israeli airstrikes on Iran. Israel is one of the United States’ closest allies.

A spokesperson for the State Department, responding to The New York Times on Sunday, said, “We are aware of reports that this dual U.S.-Iranian citizen has been arrested in Iran.” This response was in relation to Reza Valizadeh, an Iranian-American journalist whom rights groups reported was detained last month in Tehran, held in prison without access to legal counsel. The State Department did not clarify in a follow-up whether Mr. Valizadeh is indeed the detained individual in question.

This report comes as Iranian leaders have escalated their rhetoric, following an initial attempt to downplay the Israeli strikes’ impact on Iran’s air-defense systems. On Saturday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatened a “crushing response” toward Israel and the U.S.

The timing of this incident coincides with the 45th anniversary of the hostage crisis when Iranians seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979, in response to perceived American political interference, holding over 50 Americans captive for 444 days.

Rights groups previously reported Mr. Valizadeh’s arrest in September, claiming he is currently detained in Evin Prison, one of Iran’s most notorious detention centers.

Mr. Valizadeh previously worked for Radio Farda, a Persian-language station under Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, funded by the U.S. government. He left in November 2022, according to a message from RFE/RL to The Times on Sunday. The organization has yet to receive any formal charges against him.

Iran’s foreign ministry and its missions to the United Nations in New York and Geneva did not respond to requests for comments on Sunday.

Iran’s foreign policy has often involved using foreign and dual-national detainees as leverage. They frequently face accusations of espionage or political crimes and are often used by Iran to gain concessions from Western countries, such as monetary payments or the release of Iranian detainees. In recent instances, Iran has conducted prisoner swaps, including an exchange with Sweden in June and a September release of five Iranian-Americans in exchange for five Iranians and the unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian oil revenue.

The State Department condemned this tactic as “cruel and contrary to international law” and advised Americans not to travel to Iran due to the risk of “kidnapping, arbitrary arrest of U.S. citizens, and wrongful detentions.”

Iranian journalists, including those based abroad, frequently face intimidation and suppression from the Iranian government, which targets independent media voices. This year, Iran ranked 176th out of 180 countries on the press freedom index by Reporters Without Borders, labeling Iran as a major jailer of journalists.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported last month that Mr. Valizadeh had traveled to Iran in February, where he was initially detained and interrogated by Iranian intelligence and security officials upon his arrival. He was later released conditionally but then rearrested, according to CPJ and HRANA, an Iranian rights organization. Specific charges have not been disclosed.

Reports remain unconfirmed regarding Mr. Valizadeh potentially facing charges related to working with foreign Persian-language media. CPJ has urged Iran to release him and drop any such charges, stressing that Iranian journalists abroad should be able to visit their homeland without facing prosecution.

In a post in August on X, Mr. Valizadeh mentioned he returned to Iran in March “without any security guarantee, not even a verbal one,” as translated by The Associated Press. He has not posted since then.