Happiness in the UK after the return of citizens who had been detained for many years in Iran

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori land at Bryce Norton Airport in southwestern England from Iran – POOL / AFP

Relatives of two British-Iranian nationals who were sentenced to several years in prison in Iran on Thursday (17) expressed their happiness after their return to the UK on charges they have always denied, reflecting the end of a long and complicated diplomatic campaign. .

“Delight in a photo,” Elika Assouri tweeted, posting a picture of herself surrounded by her father, retired engineer Anushe Ashouri, 67, and Nazan’s Jaggery-Radcliffe, 43, smiling at their family at the Bryce Norton military base. England, they landed at dawn.

Assyria was arrested in August 2017 while his mother was on his way to Iran and was sentenced to 10 years in prison on charges of spying for Israel.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe, an employee of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested in April 2016 after visiting the family with his 22-month-old daughter, the news agency’s philanthropic division.

He was convicted of plotting to overthrow the Islamic Republic and was initially sentenced to five years in prison and later to an additional one year on other charges.

London announced his release on Wednesday, while still owing Tehran பழைய 394 million ($ 520 million) in old debt, but did not link the cases.

Gabriella, 7, daughter of Jason-Radcliffe of Nassau, with her father, Richard, welcomed her mother, whom she had not seen for more than two years.

“He slept in bed between the two of them,” his aunt Rebecca Radcliffe told British media on Thursday. “It’s a very special moment for the three of them,” he said, before reminding the girl that “there is no childhood with both parents.”

After his mother was arrested in Tehran in 2016, Gabriella initially lived in Iran with her grandparents, before reuniting with her father in the UK in October 2019.

Rebecca Ratcliffe likened the reunion to “Christmas morning, when the baby is waiting for Santa Claus, when he finally arrives”. “I think they will stay for a few days in houses or lodges provided by the Ministry of External Affairs. We hope to see them later in the weekend, “said John Radcliffe, Nassanin’s father-in-law.

He said he was “very proud” of his son, who organized a six-year tireless campaign, including a hunger strike for his wife’s release.

British Secretary of State James wisely told Sky News that the change of government in Iran had “certainly helped” to advance “incredibly difficult” negotiations.