Iran sanctions lifted under historic nuclear deal

International sanctions have been lifted on Iran in a historic deal after the UN's atomic watchdog found the state had upheld promises to drastically scale back its nuclear programme.

The IAEA tonight confirmed that Iran had complied with a deal aimed at ensuring that it could not work towards making an atomic weapon.

A raft of crippling EU and US trade and asset freezes will be immediately lifted as a result.

John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, said the entire world was safer as a result of a deal many had doubted would ever come to fruition.

Hassan Rouhani, the president of Iran, sent congratulations in a message posted on Twitter.

Meanwhile the British foreign secretary Philip Hammond said skeptics who said Iran would not comply had been proved wrong.

"Years of patient and persistent diplomacy, and difficult technical work, have borne fruit as we now implement the deal," he said.

Today's landmark announcement marks a thaw in relations with a country formerly widely feared as a rouge state and potential dangerous nuclear power.

Lifting of sanctions will revitalise Iran's battered economy and bring in back into the mainstream international community.

It could also change the balance of power in the Middle East, putting Iran centre stage in the fight against Islamic State together with the US.

The nuclear announcement came hours after it emerged that the Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian was among five US citizens freed under a 'prisoner swap' between the US and Iran.

US president Barack Obama issued an executive order cancelling sanctions within minutes of the announcement. The EU is expected to sign off a similar measure shortly.