Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s Husband Seeks Meeting with Zarif

Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, has called for a meeting with Iran’s Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly by publishing an open letter. All diplomatic efforts to secure Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s freedom have been unsuccessful so far.

Richard Ratcliffe has called for a meeting with Iran’s Foreign Minister. The husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a dual British-Iranian citizen who was detained at Tehran airport in April 2016, says his wife has been taken hostage.

In an open letter addressed to Mohammad Javad Zarif, which he published on the Independent’s portal, he wrote: “Part of the story has become public, part of it remains hidden. Nazanin is one of Iran’s dual citizens who has been detained for political reasons, like a group of ordinary people who have become caught in the political situation following the nuclear agreement.”

Continuing with an account of what has happened to Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe over the past two weeks, he has called for a meeting with Iran’s Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was granted a three-day leave on September 1 (August 23). Her request to extend this leave was rejected and she was returned to prison. In his open letter, Richard Ratcliffe wrote that his wife told him she wished she had not gone on leave, and after returning to prison she suffered a nervous breakdown.

He wrote: “Her legs are still numb. She was transferred to Evin Hospital by ambulance. There is no image of her hospitalization. Your Foreign Ministry told Britain that she is completely well.”

Richard Ratcliffe, who has launched a campaign for his wife’s release, added that Iran has accused him of running a media campaign while he is only working to free his family.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been sentenced to five years in prison on charges of “activities aimed at soft overthrow” and “cooperation with hostile media.” She, who worked as a project manager for the Thomson Reuters Foundation, has denied these charges. The Thomson Reuters Foundation, which is independent of Reuters news agency and is active in areas including journalist training, has called the charges against Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe baseless.

All diplomatic efforts by the British government to secure Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s release have been unsuccessful so far. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s husband has asked the British Foreign Office to grant his wife diplomatic immunity so she can be released from prison.

Source: DW