Clinton says no to Iranian prisoner swap

WASHINGTON - Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton yesterday ruled out Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's suggestion that three detained American hikers be swapped with Iranian citizens held in the United States.

Clinton said that the hikers, along with other Americans jailed in Iran, should be released immediately on humanitarian grounds. She said there is no basis for their continued detention.

"We call on Iran to release all of the American citizens that they have currently detained," she told reporters. "We believe they are being unjustly detained and they should be released without further delay. We also are very committed to making it clear to the Iranians that they should do so on humanitarian grounds since the detention of our citizens is baseless."

Her comments came a day after Ahmadinejad suggested in a television interview that the three American hikers be traded for Iranians who Tehran says are currently in U.S. jails. Ahmadinejad also suggested that there were talks under way regarding such a swap, something Clinton denied.

Clinton said the Iranian government is fully aware that if it has questions about Iranians in U.S. jails, it can request information through proper channels.

Iranian authorities arrested the hikers, Shane Bauer, Sarah Shourd and Josh Fattal, in late July after they strayed across the border from Iraq's northern Kurdistan region. Their families have said they accidentally crossed the border and meant no harm. The State Department says it is aware of at least two other Americans detained in Iran. - AP