While everyone is rightly focused on making sure that a "public option" remains a central pillar of healthcare reform, I didn't want this important story to slip under the radar:
TEHRAN, Iran - An American journalist jailed for four months in Iran was freed Monday and reunited with her parents after an appeals court suspended her eight-year prison sentence on charges of spying for the U.S. Her parents said they would bring her home to the U.S. within days.
The release of Roxana Saberi, a 32-year-old dual Iranian-American citizen, clears a major snag in President Barack Obama's efforts to engage Iran in a dialogue after decades of shunning the country. Washington had called the charges against Saberi baseless and repeatedly demanded her release.
Great news, indeed.
The reaction from the White House? Apparent joy, but no victory laps:
U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday welcomed as a "humanitarian gesture" Iran's release of U.S.-born journalist Roxana Saberi, who had been jailed on spying charges.
"He was relieved to see that Roxana Saberi has been released," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said at a news conference. "We know this has been a trying time for her family and friends and he looks forward to welcoming her home to the United States. We want to continue to stress that she was wrongly accused, but we welcome this humanitarian gesture."
And, from our SecState?
"Obviously we continue to take issue with the charges against her and the verdicts rendered but we are very heartened that she has been released and wish her and her family all of the very best."
This is great news-- most especially for Ms. Saberi and her family-- but also for our new Secretary of State, our new President, and for the role of diplomacy generally. It is concrete evidence that firm negotiation, even with your adversaries, trumps the adolescent "give me everything I want and then maybe we'll talk" madness that passed for foreign policy during the Bush Era.