Tokyo, March 22 -- The Japanese government has confirmed the release of one of the two Japanese nationals who had been detained in Iran, according to a report by Kyodo News.

In a development shared on Sunday, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi confirmed that the individual, who had been in custody since June, departed via Azerbaijan last Wednesday and arrived in Japan in good health.

Addressing the status of the remaining detainee, Motegi stated, "We are working toward the early release of the other individual."

Reports from a non-profit organisation suggest the second individual is the Tehran bureau chief of the public broadcaster NHK, who was taken into custody by local authorities on 20 January.

This follows an earlier ann...