John Limbert

Ambassador John W. Limbert is the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iran in the State Department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. He is a veteran U.S. diplomat and a former official at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, where he was held captive during the Iran hostage crisis.

Limbert was born in Washington, D.C., where he graduated from public school. He received his B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. all from Harvard University. His Ph.D. was in History and Middle Eastern Studies.

In 1962, Limbert first traveled to Iran while his parents were working there for USAID. Before joining the U.S. Foreign Service, Limbert returned to Iran as a Peace Corps volunteer (1964–66) and as an English instructor at Pahlavi University (1969–72, later renamed Shiraz University). He speaks Persian fluently.

Limbert is married to an Iranian woman, and since 1980, he has been a long-time resident of .

Ambassador Limbert joined the Foreign Service in 1973. His overseas postings included Algeria, Djibouti, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. From 2000-2003, he was Ambassador to the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. While still Ambassador, he was one of the first civilian officials to enter Baghdad in April 2003 with the Organization of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance. Among his earlier positions, he served as Deputy Coordinator for Counterterrorism in the State Department (2000). Limbert retired from the Foreign Service with the rank of Minister-Counselor.

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