Iran to Release 1 of 3 Jailed Hikers

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran says it will release one of the three jailed American hikers on Saturday, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

Shane Bauer, 27, Sarah Shourd, 31, and Josh Fattal, 27, were detained on July 31, 2009 while hiking in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan. Iran has claimed the three crossed into the country illegally and has alleged they are spied working for the U.S.

"Offering congratulations on Eid al-Fitr, the release of one of the detained Americans will be at Saturday, 9 a.m. at the Estaghlal hotel,’ a text message to reporters Thursday from the Culture Ministry said.

It is common in the Islamic world to mark the Eid al-Fitr holiday by showing clemency and releasing prisoners.

The mothers of the hikers, Cindy Hickey, Nora Shourd and Laura Fattal, release the following statement Thursday:

"We have seen the news reports and are urgently seeking further information. We hope and pray that the reports are true and that this signals the end of all three of our children's long and difficult detention. Shane, Sarah and Josh are all innocent and we continue to call for their immediate release, so that they can return home together and be reunited with our families.’

The communication from Iran didn’t say which of the jailed Americans would be released. But Sarah Shourd has told her mother she has serious medical problems.

Shourd's mother said her daughter told her in a telephone call in August that prison officials have denied her requests for medical treatment. The mother said they talked about her daughter's medical problems, including a breast lump and precancerous cervical cells, and her solitary confinement in Tehran's Evin prison.

In Washington, the State Department said it was aware of reports that one of the three would be freed but could not confirm them. The United States has no diplomatic presence in Iran and one department official said there had not yet been any word about a possible release from the Swiss embassy in Tehran, which represents U.S. interests in the country.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the U.S. "would obviously welcome the release of one of the hikers" but stressed that Washington has long been calling for the release of all three on humanitarian grounds.

The high-rise Estaghlal hotel is the same location where the parents of Bauer, Shourd and Fattal met their kids earlier this year . The hotel overlooks Evin Prison, where the hikers have been held for more than a year.

In May, Shane Bauer and Sarah Shourd became engaged in Evin Prison. Bauer used threads he pulled from his shirt to make engagement rings for the couple. They plan to marry as soon as possible after their release, and Josh Fattal will be the best man.