Three American citizens who had been detained for years in China were released, a State Department spokesperson said Wednesday. They are Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung.Li, 62, who is from Long Island,

The Americans were freed in exchange for a Chinese intelligence officer who was serving a 20-year sentence in the United States, officials said.

Americans Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung are en route back to the United States from imprisonment in China, the White House said.