Ratcliffe urges UK to aid hard-hit Iran in struggle
BRITAIN should help Iran tackle its coronavirus epidemic to build trust in pursuit of the release of Nazanin Zaghari-ratcliffe and other dual nationals jailed by the regime, her husband has said.
Richard Ratcliffe said his wife, who has been granted a two-week release from Tehran’s Evin prison, had borne the brunt of a collapse of relations between the UK and that the Government had a duty to use the “window of opportunity” provided by the pandemic.
“At the moment the breakdown of relations between Britain and Iran has landed fully on Nazanin’s shoulders. Well, that’s not fair that she should handle all that enmity,” he said.
“They clearly have been sending signals in the public domain that they need humanitarian supplies and medical equipment and so on, and with sanctions that is difficult. There is a way the UK can address some of the historical baggage they’ve got.
“People in Iran are as desperate as they are in the UK. What matters is saving lives, and Britain is in a position to help. It will be remembered whether it does or it doesn’t.”mrs Zaghari-ratcliffe,
a mother of one from north London, will spend the next fortnight at her parents’ house in Tehran under a temporary release program designed to slow the spread of coronavirus in Iran’s prison system.
Her husband told The Daily Telegraph she was happy but disoriented to wake up outside prison yesterday morning. Her family are hoping the furlough heralds the “beginning of the end” of her incarceration but have cautioned that a previous release in 2018 saw her return to jail.
Mr Ratcliffe said he would call on Britain to take a tough line with Tehran if that happened this time.
Iran has confirmed 16,169 cases and 1,135 deaths as of yesterday, making it the worst national epidemic in the world after China and Italy.
The country’s judiciary says it has temporarily released 85,000 prisoners to stop the infection raging through crowded jails.