India, March 23 -- Japan's Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Sunday that one of two Japanese nationals detained in Iran has been released and will be returning to Japan.

Motegi, speaking on a Fuji Television talk show, said the person had been detained since last year and was released on Wednesday.

He said another Japanese national who was arrested earlier this year is still in custody. Motegi said the release came after his repeated demands to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and that he is "working to win an early release" of the other detainee while communicating with his family and other concerned parties.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has named the person detained in Iran in January as a journalist at Japan's p...