Imprisoned American hikers in Iran to be freed

The Takeaway

Two years after Americans Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal were captured by the Iranian government while hiking along the Iran-Iraq border and charged with espionage, their lawyer says they may be freed on Wednesday. The news comes a week after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad  told The Today Show that the hikers would be freed, only to be rebuffed by Iran’s judiciary, which said only it could release the prisoners. Now, Masoud Shafiei, the Iranian lawyer acting on behalf of Bauer and Fattal, says he expects his client to be “freed today.” Thomas Erdbrink, Tehran bureau chief for The Washington Post, reports live from in front of the prison where the men are being held. James Renyolds  of the BBC reports on the latest developments.

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