Japan confirms release of second citizen held in Iran

AdvertisementJapanAsiaEast AsiaJapan confirms release of second citizen held in IranThe person, believed to be the NHK’s Tehran bureau chief, is one of two Japanese nationals who had been detained in Iran 2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenReutersPublished: 11:02am, 7 Apr 2026A ⁠Japanese national ⁠detained in Iran has been released on bail, Tokyo said on Tuesday.The person, believed to be the Tehran bureau chief of Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, is the second to be released after the Japanese government announced last month that two of its citizens had been detained.“The Japanese embassy in Iran has confirmed that a Japanese national who was detained by Iranian authorities on January 20 was released on April 6 local time,” government spokesman Minoru Kihara said. Advertisement“The ambassador in Iran directly met that person after release and confirmed they were in good health,” Kihara told reporters, without providing further details such as identity or charges. NHK declined to comment on the release.A man walks past a television screen showing a live broadcast of US President Donald Trump delivering national address on the Iran war in Tokyo on Thursday. Photo: AFPIn February, Radio ‌Free Europe reported that NHK’s Tehran bureau chief Shinnosuke ‌Kawashima had been arrested in Iran and transferred ⁠to ⁠a local prison. AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x