Morad Tahbaz, an American-British conservationist held for nearly six years in Iran's Evin Prison, has spoken publicly about the severe conditions he endured and warned that Americans still detained by Tehran face growing danger. He said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps used detained Americans as bargaining chips and accused Western governments of failing to deter Iran's practice of hostage-taking, cautioning that renewed conflict with Iran could make conditions worse for those still held.

Tahbaz described spending four months in complete isolation in a small cell lit continuously by a bright light that never switched off. He was held in Ward 2A of Evin Prison, a high-security section he said was run by the intelligence branch of the Revolutionary Guard, and was allowed out of his cell only twice daily for around ten minutes, during which he was forced to wear a blindfold.