In the 1979 hostage crisis, why did Iran free 10 Black Americans before the others?

Sgt James Hughes was one of the hostages released early. With US-Iran relations once again in the spotlight, he talks about being ‘handcuffed, under armed guard’ Since the United States launched a joint military campaign with Israel on Iran in February, many commentators and historians have revisted a chapter of modern history: the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. On 4 November, a student demonstration outside the US embassy in Tehran erupted into an all-out assault on the compound, and 66 Americans were taken hostage.