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Fact check: How much money did Obama and Biden send to Iran? What to know amid Middle East tensions
Viral claims say Obama- and Biden-era payments to Iran funded nukes, but while $17.6M was paid, there’s no evidence it financed nuclear programs.
The conflict in the Middle East has seen a wave of misinformation spread on social media. Due to the United States' involvement in the strikes on Iran alongside Israel, US citizens are also being subjected many false claims, especially around how administrations before Donald Trump dealt with Iran.
One that has particularly picked up pace concerns the payments that the administrations of Joe Biden and Barack Obama released to Iran. While the payments were indeed made, amounting to $17.6 million combined, the contexts in which they were made are important.
Since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Iran on Saturday, February 28, Trump and officials in the federal government have reiterated many claims around the payments, alleging they were used by Iran to fund their nuclear program.
However, there is no conclusive evidence to suggest Iran has used the money for its nuclear program. Iran, as of now, claims that its nuclear power facilities are purely for civilian purposes.
Here, we will look at the contexts of the payments, when, why and under what circumstances they were made.
Obama's $1.7 billion Cash Payment
Barack Obama transferred $1.7 billion in cash to Iran in 2016 as part of a settlement for a failed pre-1979 arms deal. An initial $400 million was delivered by plane on January 17, 2016, coinciding with the release of American prisoners. The remaining $1.3 billion was the estimated interest that the Iranian cash held by Iran accumulated since the 1970s.
Initially, the Obama administration did not clarify if the payment and the release of hostages were connected, trying to suggest that are separate. Later, however, they acknowledged that the cash was used as leverage to ensure the US hostages leave Iran safely.
Also read: Where is Benjamin Netanyahu now? Debunking ‘assassination’ and ‘fleeing to Germany’ claims
Biden $16 Billion Payment To Iran
The Biden administration approved waivers enabling Iran access to about $10 billion from Iraqi electricity payments held in escrow. The escrow had been extended multiple times since the US backed Iraq in the war with Iran. It also unfroze $6 billion in a Qatar-held account tied to a hostage deal, though officials stated it remained undisbursed and restricted to humanitarian use.
In total, the Biden administration made $16 billion accessible to Iran.
Thus, combined, the Biden administration and the Obama administration made combined $17.7 billion in funds available to Iran.
