British Foreign Secretary to Meet with Nazanin Zaghari's Husband

The British Foreign Secretary is set to meet with Nazanin Zaghari's husband to discuss diplomatic support for her as one of the options for her release from prison. Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe is an Iranian-British aid worker who was arrested in Iran during a holiday trip in April 2016 and later accused of 'plotting' to overthrow the government. Reuters reported on Wednesday (November 15) that Boris Johnson will meet with Richard Ratcliffe on the same day. Johnson has come under pressure following his recent remarks that Zaghari was involved in journalism training before her arrest in Iran. Some of Johnson's critics say these statements might lead Iran to extend Zaghari's prison sentence, which was originally five years for attempting to overthrow the regime. The Thomson Reuters Foundation, Zaghari's employer, stated that Johnson's comments are completely incorrect and that she was never involved in journalism training. The foundation accused the British Foreign Secretary of potentially increasing her prison term with his inaccurate statements regarding the reason for her trip to Iran. Monique Villa, CEO of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, stated that 'Zaghari Ratcliffe is not a journalist and has never received journalism training at this foundation,' but was working as a project manager. In response to the criticism in Parliament, Johnson said he meant that journalism training is not a crime and it is unacceptable for Iran to imprison someone for such an offense. Ultimately, the British Foreign Secretary apologized on Monday for his remarks about Nazanin Zaghari. The meeting between Johnson and Ratcliffe comes after Reuters previously reported on the possibility of British consular support for Zaghari as one of the options for the release of this Iranian-British citizen. A statement from the British Foreign Office regarding this meeting indicated that Johnson wants to assure Richard Ratcliffe that the British government will work for his wife's release on humanitarian grounds. Since Nazanin Zaghari is also a British citizen, London can protect her through diplomatic support due to her trial in an unfair court. According to this report, it is still unclear how the Islamic Republic will respond to the issue of Zaghari's fate being taken out of a purely consular matter and into the hands of the relationship between the two governments. Previously, a spokesperson for Theresa May, the British Prime Minister, told reporters that the British Foreign Secretary had spoken with Zaghari's husband and that this support is being considered as one of the options. Richard Ratcliffe, Nazanin Zaghari's husband, has accused Iran of using his wife as a bargaining chip with Britain and has urged Boris Johnson to take action regarding consular support for her. Boris Johnson also stated in the British Parliament that he would try to go to Tehran in the coming weeks to meet with Nazanin Zaghari. Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran Public and Revolutionary Prosecutor, detailed new charges against Zaghari on October 17, introducing her as 'responsible for online journalism training for BBC Persian' and stating that she was 'working to attract and train individuals for propaganda activities against Iran.' According to this judicial official, 'the use of fake emails, complex and lengthy passwords, password storage, and the use of encryption software for content and information were among the topics covered in this training.' The charges against Nazanin Zaghari were raised while the director of the BBC World Service had previously stated that she had never collaborated with the Persian section of this media outlet. In this context, Britain is considering providing consular support for Nazanin Zaghari. The British Environment Minister defended Boris Johnson regarding the Nazanin Zaghari issue. 'The Revolutionary Guards have detained at least 30 dual-national Iranian citizens over the past two years.'