The mothers of three US hikers held in Iran for 10 months amid spy accusations were able to see their loved ones on Friday for the second time in as many days, the trio's lawyer told AFP.
"The mothers were united with their children today (Friday) for the second time," lawyer Masoud Shafii said.
"Later today, a meeting is scheduled between me and their mothers," Shafii added without elaborating.
At their first teary-eyed reunion with their children in Tehran's Esteghlal Hotel on Thursday, the mothers appealed for the trio's release as a "humanitarian gesture" by Iran.
Shane Bauer, 27, Sarah Shourd, 31, and Josh Fattal, 27, appeared before reporters alongside their mothers dressed in jeans and T-shirts, with Shourd also wearing a maroon headscarf in conformity with the Islamic dress code for women in Iran.
They were then taken back to prison.
Washington described that five-hour meeting as "positive".
"It is something that we have... pushed hard for," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters in Washington on Thursday when asked whether the move raised hopes for their eventual release.
The visit was brokered by the Swiss embassy which protects US interests in Iran in the absence of diplomatic ties.
Iran has given no official indication it is preparing to release the three, although the visit itself was seen as a breakthrough.
The three Americans were detained last July 31 after crossing Iran's border while on a hiking trip in northern Iraq's Kurdistan region.
Washington insists they are innocent and should be released, stressing that they had mistakenly strayed across an unmarked border in a remote mountainous area.
On Wednesday, Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi renewed accusations of espionage against the trio.
"Despite their being spies and entering Iran illegally, they were dealt with according to religious teachings and in a humanitarian way," Moslehi said.
Copyright 2010 AFP Global Edition
