Richardson, who drove here from Baghdad, said he met eight times with Hamdoon before traveling to the Iraqi capital over the weekend to clinch the deal in an hour-long meeting Sunday with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and his deputy prime minister, Tariq Aziz. He described the atmosphere of the meeting in the presidential palace as cordial and said that after Saddam agreed to free the two men, he spontaneously grabbed the Iraqi leader’s hand to thank him for his decision.

Saddam Hussein was toughhe is a very strong individual, Richardson said. He let me know his views on a number of issues. He showed warmth at certain times, (but) in the end he responded to the humanitarian appeal.

Richardson spoke at a news conference Monday afternoon with William Barloon, 39, and David Daliberti, 41, who were released Sunday after serving 114 days of eight-year sentences following their arrest by Iraqi soldiers near the border with Kuwait on March 13. The two, who worked as aircraft mechanics for defense contractors in Kuwait, arrived here about 1 p.m. Monday after a 600-mile car trip from Baghdad en route to reunification with family and friends in the United States and Kuwait.

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We were treated fairly, Daliberti said. We weren’t tortured or whipped or beaten.

Iraqi officials clearly hope the release of the men will improve their country’s standing before the U.N. Security Council, which just days ago voted to maintain punishing economic sanctions imposed on Iraq after its invasion of Kuwait five years ago next month. U.S. officials, however, have insisted that Richardson’s mission is a humanitarian matter that has no bearing on the sanctions regime.

No deal, no promises, no assurances, national-security adviser Anthony Lake said on ABC-TV’s Good Morning America. Lake said Saddam pardoned the two men after deciding that holding them was a liability, not an asset, the Reuter news agency reported.

But Richardson was more charitable, at least toward Hamdoon, whom he described as an unsung hero in the successful humanitarian release.