Husband of jailed Briton presses FM to take him on visit to Iran скачать в хорошем качестве

Husband of jailed Briton presses FM to take him on visit to Iran

(15 Nov 2017) The husband of a British woman jailed in Iran pressed Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson on Wednesday to take him along on a planned trip to Tehran amid mounting pressure to secure her freedom. Richard Ratcliffe told reporters after the session that Johnson hadn't set a date for the visit meant to win the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a 38-year-old charity worker accused of plotting the "soft toppling'' of Iran's government. Ratcliffe told Johnson he wanted to travel with him because he has been denied a visa to Iran ever since his wife was arrested in April 2016. Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a dual British-Iranian citizen, says she was simply visiting family when she was arrested. Her case was complicated this month when Johnson suggested Zaghari-Ratcliffe was training journalists, and the Iranian judiciary seized on the statement as proof of the allegations against her. Johnson on Monday apologised for any harm done by his misstatement. Johnson and Ratcliffe also discussed the possibility of extending diplomatic protection to Zaghari-Ratcliffe, which would give her case the status of a legal dispute between the British and Iranian governments. Ratcliffe believes the move would help his wife. "It's important that where softly-softly doesn't work, where it has been escalated by the past couple of weeks' events and the foreign secretary's words being used, I think it is appropriate,'' he said. "We agreed to keep talking about it." Zaghari-Ratcliffe's situation is delicate because Iran doesn't recognize dual citizenship for its nationals. This means that those with dual citizenship don't normally receive the same level of consular assistance from UK authorities as those who have only a British passport. Ratcliffe was speaking alongside Labour MP for Hampstead and Kilburn, Tulip Siddiq, who added that Johnson would push to see Nazanin in prison when he travels to Iran. If Richard Ratcliffe is allowed to travel alongside Johnson he will be able to see his wife and also his 3 year-old daughter Gabriella who he has not seen in 19 months and who has since lost the ability to speak English. Gabriella has been under the care of her maternal grandparents in Iran since her mother was arrested. Richard Ratcliffe said Nazanin's physical and mental health were a concern. He said she was negatively impacted by frequent reports in Iranian media referring to her as a spy. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...