Three Americans who the State Department said were wrongfully detained in China for years are on their way back to the U.S. as part of a prisoner swap, a senior U.S. official with knowledge of the deal told ABC News.

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

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

Three Americans who had been detained in China for years have been released in a prisoner swap between Washington and Beijing.

Three American citizens imprisoned for years by China have been released, the White House said Wednesday. The three are Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung. "Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years," the White House said in a statement.

Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung have been released from detention, a spokesperson for the National Security Council said.

By Simon Lewis and Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) -China has released U.S. citizens Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, the White House said on Wednesday, concluding years of diplomacy over Americans that Washington says were wrongfully detained in China.

A U.S. official said President Joe Biden pressed for the return of the three when he met Chinese President Xi Jinping at a regional summit in Peru.

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