Former FBI agent missing in Iran since 2007 (photo courtesy Levinson family)

In the video, posted on the family’s website, Levinson is seen pleading for his release. “I need the help of the United States government to answer the requests of the group that has held me. Please help me get home. Thirty-three years of service to the United States deserves something,” Levinson is heard saying.

Levinson, who suffers from diabetes, looks noticeably thinner but says his captors are treating him well.

The video was emailed to Levinson’s wife in November of last year.  It was the first proof of life the family had received since he disappeared in March 2007.   An FBI statement said  “the video was not previously released due to ongoing investigative initiatives. The investigation to locate Mr. Levinson continues, as the U.S. government continues to work to find him and bring him home safely.”

It is unclear who is holding Levinson, but the Iranian government has denied any role in his capture.  US officials have asked their Iranian counterparts for investigative assistance but no information has turned up thus far.

Levinson was reportedly on Kish Island investigating cigarette smuggling for a private client and is believed to have met with Dawud Salahuddin, a fugitive accused of killing an aide to the Shah of Iran in Washington, DC in 1980.

The family released their own video asking his captors to tell them their demands.