British-Australian academic named as third Iranian detainee
A British-Australian woman detained in Iran has been identified as Kylie Moore-Gilbert, a Middle East politics specialist at Melbourne University.
The Cambridge-educated academic has been in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison for almost a year, having reportedly been given a 10-year sentence.
Her case came to light last week along with those of another British-Australian woman, Jolie King, and her Australian boyfriend Mark Firkin, who have been held for the past 10 weeks in an unrelated incident.
The Australian Government has said it is lobbying Tehran to ensure all three are appropriately cared for.
A statement released by Miss Moore-Gilbert’s family said: “We have been, and continue to be, in close contact with the Australian Government.
“Our family thanks the Government and the University of Melbourne for their ongoing support at this distressing and sensitive time. We believe that the best chance of securing Kylie’s safe return is through diplomatic channels.”
Australia’s Foreign Minister, Marise Payne, says she has raised their cases “many times” with her Iranian counterpart, Javad Zarif.
Senator Payne denied the arrests were politically motivated, although some reports have speculated the trio are being held in hope of giving Iran political leverage.
The three are in the same prison where British-Iranian woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been jailed since 2016 on spying charges.