US, Iran to swap detainees after $6 billion unfrozen

Frozen funds totalling $6 billion have been transferred to Qatari banks under a US-Iran prisoner swap deal, with a plane on standby in Tehran to fly out five American detainees, a source told AFP on Monday.

The release of the funds by US ally South Korea, long blocked under sanctions, is the key condition for the exchange of five Americans detained in Iran and, according to Tehran, five Iranians held in the United States.

Qatar, which acted as the mediator because Washington and Tehran do not have diplomatic relations, has informed both sides of the transfer, said the source briefed on details of the matter.