Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is finally back in the UK six years after being captured by Iran

Mrs. Zaghari-Ratcliffe was bringing her daughter Gabriella to see her family when she was arrested and sentenced to 5 years in prison, 4 years in Evin prison and 1 person under house arrest.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has returned to the UK six years after being arrested in Iran.

Her flight, also carrying Anoosheh Ashoori, landed at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire shortly after 1am on Thursday.

Mrs. Zaghari-Ratcliffe boarded the plane first, then Mr. Ashoori, before the two walked down the steps together to exit the plane.

The British-Iranian mother waved to the cameras as she entered a reception building at Oxfordshire airport, while Mr Ashoori, who was carrying a magazine, saluted.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe will be reunited with husband Richard Ratcliffe and daughter Gabriella, who will welcome her home in a reception building at the airport.

The mother of a British-Iranian is accused of plotting to overthrow the Iranian government, which she denies.

The family’s lawyer Hojjat Kermani said she was released, along with Anoosheh Ashoori, following negotiations between London and Tehran over a £400m debt between the British and Iranian governments.

A source close to their families has now claimed Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and detainee Anoosheh Ashoori left Iran this morning.

Ms. Zaghari-Ratcliffe was bringing the couple’s daughter Gabriella to see her family when she was arrested and sentenced to 5 years in prison, 4 years in Evin prison and 1 person under house arrest.

Nazanin told independent investigators that she was threatened with execution and that her family was tortured.

She also said she was chained and blindfolded in prison – and suffered from sensory loss and insomnia.

And she said she was interrogated for nine hours in solitary confinement and bombarded by bright lights and blinding TVs.

Her husband Richard said Nazanin, who spent a week in a mental hospital chained to a bed in 2018, even committed suicide.

She was diagnosed with PTSD, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Sacha Deshmukh, chief executive officer of Amnesty International UK, said: “This is great news, but it won’t come too soon.

“Nazanin and Anoosheh should never have been arrested in the first place – both were jailed on national security charges, a common practice in Iran.

“There is no doubt that Nazanin and Anoosheh were used as political pawns by the Iranian authorities – and the Iranian authorities acted with calculated cruelty, seeking to deprive the Iranian authorities of the ultimate diplomatic value. out of their captivity.

“The government needs to follow up on the release of Nazanin and Anoosheh by immediately extending the call for the release of UK citizens Mehran Raoof and Morad Tahbaz, both of whom are still going through an ordeal too much. similar to Nazanin and Anoosheh.

“Clearly for many years, the Iranian authorities are targeting foreign nationals with false charges related to national security in order to exert diplomatic pressure and it is more important than ever to You must work multilaterally to combat this covert behavior.”

Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, said he was “extremely grateful” for her release and that he and their daughter Gabriella were “looking forward to a new life”.

Earlier, Labour’s Tulip Siddiq, the family’s local MP, confirmed the news on tweet: “Nazanin is at the airport in Tehran and on his way home. I entered politics to make a difference, and right now I feel like I was.”

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said: “I can confirm Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori will return to the UK today, and Morad Tahbaz has been released from prison. They will be reunited with their families later in the day. now on”.