AMMAN, Jordan—The Trump administration acknowledged that Iran has been imprisoning an American Navy member for the past six months, confirming recent press reports about the U.S. citizen who is believed to have been detained since July.
"We are aware of reports of the detention of a U.S. citizen in Iran," a State Department spokesperson told the Washington Free Beacon on background. "We have no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens abroad."
However, "due to privacy considerations, we have no additional information to provide at this time," the official said.
The New York Times reported Monday that a Navy veteran identified as 46-year-old Michael White, a California resident, had been seized by Iranian authorities and sent to prison in late July while he was visiting an Iranian girlfriend.
White's mother told the Times that her son never made it to his flight out of Iran.
Both the State and Homeland Security Departments are said to be aware of the situation, but are not providing details to the press.