British mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been released from Iranian prison today as part of prisoner release.
The 42-year-old was among thousands of prisoners temporarily released from jail by the government in Tehran because of the coronavirus outbreak, her husband said.
She serving a five-year prison term in Tehran for sedition after being arrested in April 2016 at Tehran airport as she was returning home to London with her then 22-month-old daughter, Gabriella, following a family visit.
Iranian officials temporarily freed around 85,000 prisoners including political detainees in a bid to stop the spread of the virus that has so far killed 988 people in Iran.
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was released from Evin Prison at 3pm local time, as one of thousands of Iranian prisoners who have been released temporarily to rapid spread of coronavirus in Iran.
Her movements will be restricted to 300m from her parents’ home in Tehran and she will be required to wear an ankle tag.
Husband Richard Ratcliffe said following her release: ‘Unfortunately, Nazanin will be exceptionally required to wear an ankle tag during the furlough, which her parents have now hired from the authorities.
‘Nazanin’s movements will be restricted to 300 metres from her parents’ home.’
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was seen wearing an ankle tag (left) after her temporary release from an Iranian prison today and (right) in a video call with her husband, Richard
He added in a statement: ‘The Free Nazanin Campaign is pleased to confirm – as has long been promised – that Nazanin was this afternoon [Tuesday] released temporarily on furlough for two weeks until 4 April 2020.’
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab urged the Iranian regime to ‘ensure she receives any necessary medical care’ while on temporary release.
He said in a statement: ‘I am relieved that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was today temporarily released into the care of her family in Iran.
‘We urge the regime to ensure she receives any necessary medical care. While this is a welcome step, we urge the government now to release all UK dual nationals arbitrarily detained in Iran, and enable them to return to their families in the UK.’
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was a charity worker with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was strenuously denying the charges against her,
Her daughter Gabriella had remained in the country cared for by family.
Repeated calls for her release by the British Government – including a direct appeal by then prime minister Theresa May to Iranian president Hassan Rouhani during a UN general assembly in New York – failed to produce results.
Mr Ratcliffe has previously said his wife was told by judges in court that her case related to an unpaid £400 million debt the UK owes to Iran in relation to the purchase of Chieftain tanks in the 1970s.
However, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was released today on furlough for two weeks from the Iranian jail where she has been held.
British mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her husband Richard Ratcliffe and their daughter Gabriella
Labour MP Tulip Siddiq MP said today: ‘We are pleased and relieved that Nazanin will be with her family rather than in jail at this time of terrible chaos and uncertainty.
‘However, we have been here before and know from past experience that Nazanin will be treated like a prisoner in her own home. The UK Government must get reassurances from Iran that she won’t be harassed or intimidated while on temporary release.
‘Ministers should also be doing absolutely everything they can to make this release permanent. This includes resolving the debt we owe to Iran and making Nazanin’s case a deal-breaker in their ongoing negotiations with the Iranian Government.’
Raab earlier hinted that British-Iranian nationals held in Iranian prisons could be granted temporary release amid the coronavirus outbreak.
The Foreign Secretary told MPs he wanted to be ‘careful and wait until I’ve got actual confirmation’ after outlining that the British authorities are waiting to hear back on individual cases from their Iranian counterparts.
Iran has released 85,000 prisoners on temporary leave in a bid to curb the spread of the virus, with Western nations pushing for the release of dual nationals.
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was released from Evin Prison in Tehran at 3pm local time after being arrested in April 2016
Speaking in the Commons today, Conservative former foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt asked: ‘Does he know if Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is amongst the political prisoners that Iran has today released?
‘And does not the ability of a highly dangerous disease to spread through a prison not highlight the immorality of detaining people who are wholly innocent?’
Mr Raab praised Mr Hunt for his work in trying to secure the release of all British-Iranian nationals, adding: ‘I spoke to the foreign minister yesterday, I’ve made clear not least as Iran considers releasing prisoners on a pretty large scale that there is no excuse for not releasing all of the UK dual nationals on furlough.
‘We’re waiting for confirmation in relation to individual cases but I can assure him we’re getting – I want to be careful and wait until I’ve got actual confirmation – but this is a high priority for the Government and I raised it, as I say, with foreign minister [Javad Zarif] yesterday.’
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport while travelling to show her young daughter, Gabriella, to her parents in April 2016.
She was sentenced to five years in prison over allegations, which she denies, of plotting to overthrow the Tehran government.
She was later afforded diplomatic protection by the UK Government, which argues that she is innocent and that her treatment by Iran failed to meet obligations under international law.