Tehran rules out mother’s release

HOPES of an early release for a British mother held in Iran on spying charges were dashed yesterday when it emerged that prosecutors are now pressing ahead with a new case against her.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s lawyer said on Thursday that she had been listed as ‘eligible for early release’ – raising hopes that she might be freed for Christmas following lobbying by Britain’s foreign secretary Boris Johnson.

Earlier this week, her husband Richard Ratcliffe said: ‘It feels like the end is much closer.’

But yesterday, the head of justice in Tehran province, Gholamhossein Esmaili, said: ‘Besides serving her current sentence [of five years], she has also another ongoing case against her in court.’

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s family have said the second case could lead to 16 more years in prison, with charges including joining organisations working to overthrow the Islamic Republic.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has dual British-Iranian nationality and the release of such citizens in Iran in recent years has been done mainly through prisoner exchanges.

However, Iran refuses to recognise dual nationals and denies them access to consular assistance. It has arrested at least 30 dual citizens in the past two years, mostly on spying charges.

In Moscow, Mr Johnson declined to comment.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 38, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested at Tehran airport in April of last year as she was heading back to her home in London, with her young daughter Gabriella.

She was convicted of plotting to overthrow Iran’s clerical establishment, a charge denied by her family and the foundation.