Kylie Moore-Gilbert: Lecturer released by Iran 'in prisoner swap'

A British-Australian academic serving a 10-year sentence in Iran for espionage has been freed, with Tehran saying it was a swap for three jailed Iranians.

In a statement, Kylie Moore-Gilbert thanked those who had worked for her release and said that leaving Iran was "bittersweet".

Dr Moore-Gilbert, a lecturer at Melbourne University, had been detained in Iran since September 2018.

She was tried in secret and strongly denied all the charges against her.

According to Iranian state media, she was exchanged for an Iranian businessman and two Iranian citizens "who had been detained abroad". They have not yet been named.

News of the exchange first came on Wednesday in a statement on the website of the Young Journalist Club, a news website affiliated to state television in Iran.

"An Iranian businessman and two Iranian citizens who were detained abroad on baseless charges were exchanged for a dual national spy named Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who worked for the Zionist regime," it said.

Video of the exchange was published by state broadcaster IRIB news and the Tasnim website.