The exchange was reportedly months in the making, and included the release of at least one Chinese citizen in US custody.

The State Department announced the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung. A U.S. government official told NBC News the three were exchanged for Chinese detainees.

Three American men held for years in Chinese prisons have been released in a holiday prisoner swap just in time for Thanksgiving.

China released three American detainees Wednesday after striking a deal for a prisoner exchange with the Biden administration.

The Americans freed from China are Mark Swidan, a businessman from Texas, who was arrested in 2012 and accused of drug related offenses; Kai Li, who had been held since 2016 on espionage charges; and John Leung, who had residency in Hong Kong, and was sentenced last year to life in prison on spying charges.

The plight of Americans facing exit bans in China show the enduring risks of getting caught in the country’s murky legal system.

Three American citizens imprisoned for years by China arrived back in the United States late Wednesday. Their release, announced earlier by the White House, was the result of a rare diplomatic agreement with Beijing in the final months of the Biden administration.