Last weekend UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson visited Tehran, raising hopes that the Iranian regime would release Anglo-Iranian political prisoner Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.
However, while suspending a court hearing which could have led to an extension of Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s 5-year sentence, Iranian officials and media did not even refer to the charity worker when discussing Johnson’s meetings with President Hassan Rouhani and other senior figures.
So will Zaghari-Ratcliffe be home for Christmas, reunited with her 3-year-old daughter Gabriella and her husband Richard? I discussed the situation with Julia Hartley-Brewer of talkRADIO on Monday, discussing Iran’s motives for detaining her, the factions within the regime complicating a possible release, and wider issues between Iran, the UK, and other countries.
Listen to Discussion from 22:10 in 1200-1230 Segment
Sometimes diplomacy moves very, very quickly and we get that breakthrough we want. But sometimes diplomacy drags out and there are complications and internal fights.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed.