China releases three US citizens held for years in prisoner swap

Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung freed after Biden administration forges rare agreement with Beijing

Three American citizens imprisoned for years by China have been released in a prisoner swap, the White House has said, announcing a rare diplomatic agreement with Beijing in the final months of the Biden administration.

The three are Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, all of whom had been designated by the US government as wrongfully detained. Swidan had been facing a death sentence on drug charges while Li and Leung were imprisoned on espionage charges.