A US federal judge has approved the release on bail of an Iranian-born engineer just days before his trial in a case tied to a 2024 drone strike on a US military base in Jordan attributed to Iran-backed militants.

US District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston had previously refused to release Mahdi Sadeghi, a dual US-Iranian citizen, from custody, citing concerns that he might flee before trial. He is accused of conspiracy to unlawfully obtain technology used in a navigation system for Iranian military drones.

Prosecutors allege the technology was integrated into a drone that hit the US base known as Tower 22 near the Syrian border in January 2024, killing three Army Reserve soldiers and injuring 47 others.

However, on Thursday, Talwani said circumstances had shifted since Sadeghi’s arrest in December 2024, pointing to the ongoing war involving Iran that began in February after joint US-Israeli strikes.

She said the conflict had made it less likely that Sadeghi or his family would return to Iran and reduced the incentive for him to flee.

“It is just a different political world,” she said.

The judge also noted that Sadeghi’s wife had expressed a desire to remain in the United States, where the family lives in Natick, Massachusetts, adding that leaving would risk separating him from them if he chose to avoid trial.

She ordered his release on Friday under a $500,000 secured bond, along with strict home confinement and GPS ankle monitoring. His attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Sadeghi has pleaded not guilty to charges that he participated in a scheme to violate US export controls and sanctions laws by acquiring technology for Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini’s company, which allegedly worked with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and developed navigation systems used in Shahed drones.

He is scheduled to stand trial alone on June 22 after Italian authorities last year released co-defendant Abedini, who had been detained pending extradition to the United States following Iran’s detention and subsequent release of an Italian journalist.