Young British mother detained in Iran - please help

[PenguinWatch]

A dear woman who is a close friend of very close family members has been detained by the Iranian revolutionary guard after visiting her parents in Iran for a holiday. She has remained held in solitary confinement in an unknown location for the past 4 weeks. No one has seen her. She has been forced to sign a confession of espionage. Her 2 year old daughter was taken from her at the airport and given to her mother. That was the last time her family saw her. She is a deeply caring, sensitive and beautiful mother. She is not a politician, not an activist, she is a charity worker. She has dual British and Iranian citizenship and has lived in the UK with her husband (who I have known for as long as I can remember) for years.

So far, whilst the Foreign Office have been involved, no one knows what is going on. We have no idea why she has been detained or how she is being treated.

I cannot image the nightmare she is living at the moment, alone and scared, torn from her little girl, her husband, her family, her home.

Amongst other things, her family have set up a petition to try and get the government to do more to help her. Please, please sign and share this petition to help free her so she can come home. This needs as much attention as possible.

[LyingWitchInTheWardrobe2726]

Signed. What a dreadful thing to happen.

[BigGreenOlives]

Signed both

[LyingWitchInTheWardrobe2726]

Della, perhaps start your own thread? I've signed your petition as well but I almost missed it.

[Tate15]

www.londonmet.ac.uk/international/meet-our-students/students---middle-east/nazanin-zaghari-ratcliffe/
m.facebook.com/Thomson.Reuters.Foundation/photos/a.165978550406.147852.31301735406/10151292548025407/
m.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1017992304910067&id=232689103440395


She has links with journalists and is very vocal in freedom of speech. Iran is not very tolerant and I imagine they have got her in connection with others who they deem to be enemies of Iran.

Whilst I feel sorry for the lady on a human level, she is clearly more than just a charity worker and I won't sign until there is more information. Very sad though for her husband and daughter, family and friends.

[EveryoneElsie]

Signed. Best wishes

[Tate15]

She is or was the Project Manager at Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation stands for free, independent journalism, human rights, women's empowerment, and ... Etc . All the usual stuff that Iran don't look kindly upon.

[Farahilda]

The bottom line is that both these people hold Iranian nationality and so whilst in Iran are considered by the authorities there to be in their home country.

There's very little that can be done from the outside (even by representatives of countries of which they are also nationals) that will make any real difference. But continuing official enquiries about what's going on might prevent it all just vanishing into some sort of black hole.

[PenguinWatch]

Ok Tate thanks for the input. I also believe in freedom of speech. Most right thinking people do. As you point out, she works for the TRF, a charity. The work she does has no connection with Iran btw.

I'm not sure what more information you need before deciding whether or not to support the release of someone in this situation but that is your choice. However, your insinuation that she may deserve to be torn from her family, denied the right to access to a lawyer and locked up in an unknown location in solitary confinement is outrageous.

[OohhItsNotHoxton]

Signed. I hope there will be news for her family soon.

[PenguinWatch]

She has dual citizenship Farahilda. She has a British and Iranian passport.

[happybirds]

Actually, I don't think Tate is wrong to question something before putting his/her name to it. Maybe all of the info in your opening post would avoid people digging and suspecting there may be more to it?

[Tate15]

I did not insinuate that she deserves to be locked up. I said I would like to have more information. I don't know whether she has broken the law or not.

Of course it is awful to not have access to a lawyer or any other communication with family etc, but I also am aware that countries such as Iran behave like this to anyone that they deem has gone against them or broken their laws.

If she is innocent of any wrong doing then I hope she is set free asap. However, these things are often complicated matters and more information needs to be released before I sign .

[Tate15]

She has a family member who is in Tehran who is quite outspoken about the way the country is run. Even when translated from Persian, and I know very little about Iran politics, it doesn't seem wise to critiscise so openly.

[Farahilda]

"She has dual citizenship Farahilda. She has a British and Iranian passport."

Correct. But doesn't alter the bottom line that the when in a country of which you are a national (irrespective of whether you hold many, one or no other nationalities) you are treated as a national. This applies globally.

From FCO: "If you are a dual British national in the country of your other nationality (for example, a dual US-British national in the US), we would not normally offer you support or get involved in dealings between you and the authorities of that state. We may make an exception to this rule if, having looked at the circumstances of the case, we consider that you are particularly vulnerable. These circumstances might include cases involving a murder or manslaughter, children, forced marriages or an offence which carries the death penalty. However, the help we can provide will depend on the circumstances and the country of your other nationality agreeing to it."

[EveryoneElsie]

www.londonmet.ac.uk/international/meet-our-students/students---middle-east/nazanin-zaghari-ratcliffe/

She seems to be pro freedom of speech and human rights. That may be why the Iranian govt is afraid of her, and why its so important to sign the petition.

[BeccaMumsnet]

Hi all - we're going to move this over to our Petitions topic.

[AnneTwacky]

Signed.

[pieceofpurplesky]

Signed and shared

[throwingpebbles]

Signed. But I do think the explanation on the petition page is a bit more open that what you provided.

[throwingpebbles]

Bumping this - just discovered it is a family member of a friend of my partner! It is a small world, and a baffling one.

[neighbourhoodwoes]

On a separate to the Mum, what authority do they have to hold the child and remove her passport? Surely the child not being an Iranian national should have automatically be returned to the UK? :(

[throwingpebbles]

Saw this story was in the press today, hope they make progress soon for her, hope the petition helps

[ponto]

Over 140,000 signatures now, does that mean the government have got to do something?