Iran says ready to swap prisoners with other countries amid COVID-19 pandemic

Iranian Deputy Minister of Justice for Human Rights Mahmoud Abbasi said on Sunday that Iran is ready for the exchange of prisoners with other countries on humanitarian grounds amid the COVID-19 pandemic, official IRNA news agency reported.

"We have extradited 108 Iranian prisoners from Georgia and transferred a number of foreign prisoners to their respective countries in the past two months," Abbasi said.

More than 2,000 Afghan convicts in Iran can be transferred to their country, he added.

Iran has also announced its readiness to extradite 44 Pakistani prisoners and is awaiting the response from the Pakistani authorities, the deputy minister noted.

Meanwhile, Abbasi expressed concerns over the situation of Iranian prisoners in the United Arab Emirates.

"Our prisoners in the United Arab Emirates are deprived of the minimum human rights, including consular services and fair trial," he explained.

Recently, Iran and the United States swapped prisoners.