Prisoner
Page 28
Owner Jeff Bezos, publisher Fred Ryan, and executive editor Marty Baron all shared sketches of conversations and encounters they had during my ordeal. Doug Jehl, my boss when I was hired at the Post and my editor, has spent long hours with me since my release—talking on the record and informally—about those agonizing eighteen months and the many twists and turns in the story. He’s been a supportive friend to Yegi and me as we transition to our new life in Washington, DC.
In the early weeks after my release Bob Woodward stepped forward, making himself available as an adviser to me, helping me formulate ideas at a time in my life when that seemed impossible. He invited me into his home and counseled me in every aspect of getting my experience from memory to page, talking with me, and drawing out key elements of the story. When I stop and ponder that I am reminded of just how fortunate I have been.
His assistant, Evelyn Duffy, transcribed those conversations, which are the basis for many of the action-oriented sections of the book. Just as crucially, Bob convinced me that—despite the many people who were telling me I had to go on television to tell my story—this was my story to tell and I shouldn’t let anyone else do it for me. I am forever grateful for his wisdom, guidance, and friendship during a chaotic time in my life.
My best friend at the Post, Tiffany Harness, who had encouraged me to tell the sorts of stories I wanted to from the moment I joined the paper, spent long hours during days off to do audio interviews with me that helped me to identify some of the more compelling bits of my experience. She continues to be the ideal friend and colleague.
Tracy Grant, the Post’s Managing Editor for Staff Development and Standards, held my hand through the very long road to returning to work. It wasn’t the easiest journey, but both of us have been through tougher, and I appreciate her honesty and loyalty in guiding me through the process.
I owe a debt of gratitude to Fred Hiatt, Ruth Marcus, and Jackson Diehl for giving me the opportunity to join the Post’s Opinions team, and to my Global Opinion colleagues, Eli Lopez, Karen Attiah, and Christian Caryl, for providing me the space to write about things I understand and am passionate about.
I want to pay special thanks to Post cartoonist Michael Cavna for his living sketch of my imprisonment, updated daily, a grim reminder to Washington Post readers of my plight, and Carol Morello, a national security correspondent, who gracefully wrote so many of the stories about an imprisoned colleague. Anyone would be lucky to call Michael and Carol their friends.
David Rohde, the great investigative reporter and now editor, who had his own hard-to-imagine experience of being held hostage, has been my postcaptivity Sherpa, expertly guiding me to something like a normal life. Since our first conversation in March 2016, speaking to him has felt like being home. I don’t know how else to describe it.
One of the things I’m most grateful to David for was the introduction he made to Hostage US and its founder, Rachel Briggs. If you read this book and asked yourself, “What can I do?” I’ve got a good answer. Support this organization. Hostage-taking is a crime with such far-reaching implications, but often lost in the shuffle are the people—hostages and their families—that are impacted. Rachel and her deputy, Liz Frank, expertly advocated for Yegi and my recovery in every possible sense of the word, including introductions to healthcare providers, navigating insurance claims, financial planning, and so much more. It took almost three years, but together we were finally able to get to the right person at the IRS who agreed that, yes, being held hostage by a foreign government is good reason to forgive penalties on late tax returns. Seriously, there is so much that goes into rebuilding one’s life after such an ordeal and Hostage US has been integral in that project.
The community of press freedom organizations, their staffs and extended communities, were among our best advocates and I want to specifically acknowledge Joel Simon, Executive Director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, and Delphine Halgand, the former North America Director of Reporters Without Borders, for their dedication to initiatives that made a difference in my fate.
Endless appreciation goes to Bill McCarren, Executive Director of the National Press Club, who has been the source of so much support in Yegi and my quest to build a new life in Washington, DC. Before we had ever met him he had organized so many events to draw attention to our plight; it was Bill who reached out to Muhammad Ali, securing the Champ’s statement and coordinating its release for maximum public impact.
“Uncle Bill,” as he’s known at our house, has been one of our guardian angels, ferrying us through the difficult early months of reentry. He made key suggestions and introductions that led to so many other opportunities.
First of these was connecting us with Steve Knapp, former president of George Washington University. After a very short meeting in April 2016, President Knapp offered Yegi and me a home on GW’s campus. That early nineteenth-century construction on 21st Street, known as the Lenthall House, became our first address in the capital. In its basement is where most of this book was written, and where we watched many Golden State Warriors games very late into the night.
Dr. Knapp and his chief of staff, Barbara Porter, also introduced us to Frank Sesno, the director of GW’s School of Media and Public Affairs. Frank offered me a fellowship that provided me the time and space to write, but also the opportunity to inch my way—at my own pace—into public life. His encouragement and guidance is a gift that keeps giving. The students at GW, and my interactions with them while we lived on that campus, are a highlight of this period in my life. Bruce Terker, who generously funds that fellowship, has become a friend to us and the future of good journalism.
Bill McCarren also encouraged me to pursue the Nieman fellowship at Harvard, which turned out to be one of the best things that has ever happened to Yegi and me.
The Nieman Foundation, and the fellowship’s curator, Ann Marie Lipinski, were integral in giving us an ideal place and time to reintegrate into an intellectual environment that was simultaneously a period of healing and normalization. The Nieman staff and our cohort of fellow fellows and their families will always hold special places in our hearts for their friendship and support. And special thanks to Steve Almond, who taught a nonfiction writing class at the Nieman fellowship in which I wrote a segment of this book.
The legal team at WilmerHale—whom I have written sparingly about in this book—played an outsized role in bringing me home. The team of lawyers working on our behalf was so extensive that it still makes me blush, but Bob Kimmitt, Dave Bowker, Maury Riggan, Rob McKeehan, Jess Leinwand, and Lorraine Marshall have all become friends that will be with us forever.
As Bob has told me on several occasions, if you “ever get wrongfully imprisoned abroad, you’d want the Washington Post as your employer, Mary, Ali, and Yegi Rezaian as your family, and WilmerHale representing you.” I concur.
Several government officials were generous with their time and insights. Those conversations have helped me be more confident about my understanding of why I had to endure what I did, and the story I told in these pages. They include John Kerry, Brett McGurk, Wendy Sherman, Rob Malley, Sahar Nowruzadeh, Ben Rhodes, Valerie Jarret, Jon Finer, Katie Ray, Jenny Farar, and others.
I have to call out Congressmen Dan Kildee and Jared Huffmann, who represented Amir Hekmati and me in the Capitol during our captivity. They met with our families, members of the Obama administration, and visiting Iranian officials and managed to make time to represent the Democrats in the annual Congressional baseball game. They used practices to strategize on our freedom campaigns; the ultimate double-play combination. Jared and Dan also came to Germany to welcome us to freedom, which my family will never forget.
To others who may prefer not to be named, please know how much I appreciate you, your service to this country, and all you did to ensure my safe return.
A handful of trusted friends—Georg Diez, David Lang, Laura Secor, Chris Schroeder, and Erick Sanchez—read drafts of this book at different stages. Your fe
edback and encouragement was invaluable, and I hope you see some of the changes and additions you suggested reflected in the final version. Charlie Rentschler, Charles-Antoine Joly, Mahdis Keshavarz, and Marshall Tuck all listened and gave me solid advice when I needed it most.
While I was locked up and could only call up memories, doing so brought me much-needed mirth. When it was possible, I shared those stories with Mirsani and Yadoallah. I miss the two of them tremendously and owe my survival and sanity to their comradery.
This book would not have been possible if not for Anthony Bourdain. First and foremost, his endless advocacy while I was in prison was essential in raising the international awareness of our ordeal. That commitment remained consistent and continued well after our release and until the end of his life. People know of our connection from Yegi and my appearance on Parts Unknown, but it went so much deeper than that and our lives are immeasurably richer for having known him.
Tony also introduced me to my agent, Kim Witherspoon. In all frankness, I would be lost without her and am fortunate to have her representing me. I hope I am becoming the author she thought I could be. That she stood with me while I was still wobbly from my time in captivity is the source of endless gratitude.
William Callahan, Emme Schlee, Jessica Mileo, and Maria Whelan—members of Kim’s team at Inkwell Management—were always available when I needed them.
Once Kim, William, and I had prepared what we thought was a strong book proposal, Kim took it to publishers. Several were interested, including Tony, who made a strong case for me to consider Anthony Bourdain Books at Ecco as the home for this story.
From our first conversation, Ecco’s publisher, Dan Halpern, has been committed to Tony’s vision of me telling the story I wanted to tell, and I believe that’s what I’ve done. In that process my editor, Zack Wagman, has been a faithful partner who has made suggestions and edits that consistently make me look like a better writer than I actually am. Book writing is a collaborative process and Zack has been the ideal comrade in bringing this one to life.
Finally, without my family—specifically my wife, brother, and mother—not only would it have been impossible for me to write this book, I’d also, in all probability, still be in prison. Your commitment, generosity, and loyalty to me means everything. Hopefully those are attributes that I can live up to in a fraction of the way the three of you have shown up for me.
About the Author
JASON REZAIAN served as Tehran bureau chief for the Washington Post and is now an opinion writer for the paper and a contributor to CNN. He was convicted—but never sentenced—of espionage in a closed-door trial in Iran in 2015. He lives in Washington, DC, with his wife.
Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at hc.com.
Copyright
PRISONER. Copyright © 2019 by Jason Rezaian. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
COVER DESIGN BY ALLISON SALTZMAN
COVER AND AUTHOR PHOTOGRAPHS © BEOWULF SHEEHAN
FIRST EDITION
Digital Edition JANUARY 2019 ISBN: 978-0-06-269159-0
Version 12152018
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-269157-6
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower
22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5H 4E3
www.harpercollins.ca
India
HarperCollins India
A 75, Sector 57
Noida
Uttar Pradesh 201 301
www.harpercollins.co.in
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
Auckland, New Zealand
www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
www.harpercollins.com