U.S. special envoy Adam Boehler announced that missionary Robert Vieira has been released from Tunisia.
“We appreciate the government of Tunisia’s decision to resolve this case and allow Mr. Vieira to reunite with his family after more than 13 months of pre-trial detention,” Boehler told Reuters, noting that he worked closely with Tunisian foreign minister Mohamed Ali Nafti.
Vieira was detained in Tunisia thirteen months ago after being suspected of espionage while being involved in missionary work.
Last week, the Trump administration secured the release of ballerina Ksenia Karelina in a prisoner swap with Russia. Karelina was originally detained for “petty hooliganism” while visiting family in Russia in 2024. The charge was later moved to treason.
In exchange for Karelina, the United States released prisoner Arthur Petrov, a German-Russian citizen arrested in Cyprus in 2023 for allegedly exporting sensitive microelectronics.
The Trump administration also negotiated the release of Faye Hall, an American woman detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for two months.
Hall thanked President Trump in a video shared by the White House, stating, “I voted for you twice. I’m so glad you’re in office… Thank you for bringing me home.”
In February, Marc Fogel, an American history teacher detained in Russia since 2021, returned to the United States. He had been serving a 14-year sentence after being arrested at a Russian airport for possessing what his family described as medically prescribed marijuana.
“We are beyond grateful, relieved, and overwhelmed that after more than three years of detention, our father, husband, and son, Marc Fogel, is finally coming home,” the family said in a statement.
“Thanks to the unwavering leadership of President Trump, Marc will soon be back on American soil, free where he belongs. This has been the darkest and most painful period of our lives, but today, we begin to heal,” the statement added.
