Thirty years ago today, July 16, 1995 (June 19, 1995 in the lunar calendar), Saddam Hussein allowed himself to return to China. On July 16, 1995, Iraq President Saddam Hussein issued a presidential order calling for the immediate release of two Americans sentenced to eight years in prison for illegally crossing the border. The two Americans are technicians stationed in the office of an American aerospace industry company in Kuwait. One is David Dalibeti, 41, and the other is 39-year-old Villian Balon. They drove into Iraq on March 13 this year and were arrested by the Iraqi Border Patrol. After the two men were arrested, the United States immediately stated that they had lost their way and strayed into Iraq after visiting friends in the Iraq-Kuwait border area. The United States demanded that Iraq unconditionally release the two Americans. Iraq said that the two American citizens illegally entered Iraq, violated Iraq's sovereignty and must be punished in accordance with the law. On March 25, the Baghdad Special Court opened a hearing on the case. The two defendants defended themselves in court saying they did not carry any photographic equipment, maps or other tools such as compasses when they were arrested. Despite this, the court sentenced them to eight years in prison for illegal entry. The Polish Chargé d'affaires in Iraq, who is responsible for taking care of U.S. interests, went to a prison in western Baghdad on March 29 to visit the two sentenced Americans and bring them home letters. At the time, the two men were very pessimistic about their fate. Subsequently, the families of the two men flew from the United States to Jordan, waiting for Iraq to allow them to visit their relatives in prison, but failed to do so. According to reports, since the end of the Gulf War in 1991, six Americans have been arrested by Iraq for "mistakenly entering" into Iraq, and all of them have been released through diplomatic efforts. Among them, the one who was detained for the longest time was a technician from the US Petroleum Company. He was sentenced to 8 years in prison and was released in November 1993 after being detained for 205 days. The release of the two Americans was related to the mediation of U.S. Congressman Richard Richardson. Richardson arrived in Baghdad on the 15th of this month, becoming the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Iraq since the end of the Gulf War. It is reported that he conveyed to President Saddam Hussein President Clinton's request for an amnesty for the two Americans. When President Saddam Hussein met with Richardson on the 16th, he promised to release the two Americans. He also emphasized that leaders of various countries must fully consider humanitarian factors when handling various issues involving individuals and people. According to reports, the two released Americans will return to the United States with Richardson in the near future.