When the U.S. military struck Iran's nuclear facilities in June, it opened a new salvo in the decades-long strained relationship between the two countries, with Iran detaining more Americans.
"At least two of them that we know of being taken after the strikes in June. We do think that timing kind of lends itself to being for other reasons than what probably is being stated by the court system in Iran," said Liz Richards, director of hostage advocacy and research at the Foley Foundation.
The foundation is a nonprofit that tracks the unjust detention of Americans overseas, including in Iran.
"So, currently our count is at least five U.S. nationals," Richards said. "We're concerned there could be more, though."
She said those detentions are a form of what is known as "hostage diplomacy."