US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iran 'respected his request' and agreed to release several detained women, claiming his intervention helped stop their planned executions.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he had been informed that four of the women would be “released immediately”, while four others would receive prison sentences of one month each.
"Very good news! I have just been informed that the eight women protestors who were going to be executed tonight in Iran will no longer be killed. Four will be released immediately, and four will be sentenced to one month in prison."
He further added, "I very much appreciate that Iran, and its leaders, respected my request, as President of the United States, and terminated the planned execution. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP."
Trump said the women, who were detained during anti-government protests in January, were expected to be executed on Wednesday.
Rights groups monitoring Iran, however, said the situation was more complex. They reported that two of the women had already been released on bail in March, while two others were facing charges that could carry the death penalty.
ALSO READ: 'Do Them No Harm': Trump Links Iran Peace Talks To Fate Of Eight Women Facing Execution
On Tuesday, Trump re-posted on social media a photograph of the detained women, including two teenage girls, highlighting their prosecution, after a conservative activist drew attention to their cases.
Iran's judiciary responded by rejecting claims that the women were facing imminent execution, saying some had already been released and disputing the account presented by the US president.
Trump asks Iran to release 8 women
Photo: Donald Trump/Truth Social
Iran called the whole issue as 'fabricated' and said Trump was trying to save face. "Trump's empty-handedness in the battlefield has pushed him towards fabricating achievements from false news," reported Reuters quoting the Iranian judiciary's news agency.
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