Lawyer says 81-year-old American held in Iran has surgery

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – A lawyer says an 81-year-old Iranian-American imprisoned in Iran on widely criticized spying charges has undergone surgery and had a pacemaker installed.

Washington-based attorney Jared Genser said in a statement that Baquer Namazi is expected to return to Tehran’s Evin prison on Wednesday.

Genser says Namazi underwent surgery Tuesday. He says his client has been in poor health.

Namazi is a former UNICEF representative who served as governor of Iran’s oil-rich Khuzestan province under the U.S.-backed shah.

Both he and his son, Siamak, are serving 10-year prison sentences after being convicted of “collaboration with a hostile government,” namely the United States.

A United Nations panel this week described their “arbitrary” detention as part of an “emerging pattern” by Tehran of targeting dual nationals.