This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-49943566
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 0 | Version 1 |
---|---|
Australian-British blogger and boyfriend freed from Iran jail | Australian-British blogger and boyfriend freed from Iran jail |
(about 3 hours later) | |
A British-Australian woman and her Australian boyfriend have been released from an Iranian jail, Australia's government has said. | A British-Australian woman and her Australian boyfriend have been released from an Iranian jail, Australia's government has said. |
Jolie King, who also holds a UK passport, and Mark Firkin were detained in Tehran earlier this year for reportedly flying a drone without a permit. | Jolie King, who also holds a UK passport, and Mark Firkin were detained in Tehran earlier this year for reportedly flying a drone without a permit. |
A second British-Australian, Kylie Moore-Gilbert, is still in prison. | A second British-Australian, Kylie Moore-Gilbert, is still in prison. |
Australia's foreign minister said talks to secure her release were ongoing. | Australia's foreign minister said talks to secure her release were ongoing. |
Marise Payne told reporters that it was "with some enormous relief" that she could announce Jolie King and Mark Firkin "have been released and returned". | Marise Payne told reporters that it was "with some enormous relief" that she could announce Jolie King and Mark Firkin "have been released and returned". |
The pair were detained after entering Iran as part of a major trip across Asia to the UK - they were blogging about it for thousands of followers on social media. | The pair were detained after entering Iran as part of a major trip across Asia to the UK - they were blogging about it for thousands of followers on social media. |
Ms Payne confirmed Ms Moore-Gilbert remained in prison, where she has been for almost a year having reportedly been given a 10-year sentence. | Ms Payne confirmed Ms Moore-Gilbert remained in prison, where she has been for almost a year having reportedly been given a 10-year sentence. |
"Very long-term negotiations" were taking place to secure the release of the Cambridge-educated academic, Ms Payne added. | "Very long-term negotiations" were taking place to secure the release of the Cambridge-educated academic, Ms Payne added. |
Ms Moore-Gilbert was most recently a lecturer in Islamic Studies at Melbourne University. | Ms Moore-Gilbert was most recently a lecturer in Islamic Studies at Melbourne University. |
Earlier, Iran's semi-official news agency Fars reported that the Islamic Republic's judiciary spokesman Gholam Hossein Esmayeeli confirmed all three were detained for spying. | Earlier, Iran's semi-official news agency Fars reported that the Islamic Republic's judiciary spokesman Gholam Hossein Esmayeeli confirmed all three were detained for spying. |
The two British-Australian women were believed to be the first British passport holders without dual Iranian nationality to be held in the country in recent years. | The two British-Australian women were believed to be the first British passport holders without dual Iranian nationality to be held in the country in recent years. |
Their detention echoes that of British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who has been imprisoned since 2016 after being convicted of spying, which she denies. | Their detention echoes that of British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who has been imprisoned since 2016 after being convicted of spying, which she denies. |
On Friday it was announced that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe would allow her daughter Gabriella, five, to return to the UK to begin schooling. | On Friday it was announced that Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe would allow her daughter Gabriella, five, to return to the UK to begin schooling. |
The mother and daughter were said by family to have travelled together to Iran to visit relatives before she was detained. | The mother and daughter were said by family to have travelled together to Iran to visit relatives before she was detained. |
Who are the other Britons detained in Iran? | |
As well as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a number of other dual UK-Iranian citizens are also being detained in Iran. | |
Iran does not recognise dual nationality, and there are no exact figures on the numbers of dual nationals in custody. | |
But they do include Kamal Foroughi, a former oil and gas consultant, who has been held since 2011; businessman and wildlife conservationist Morad Tahbaz who also has US citizenship and was arrested in a crackdown on environmental activists in January 2018, and Kameel Ahmady, a social anthropologist, who has been in custody since August. | |
Anousheh Ashouri, a British-Iranian dual national, was sentenced to 10 years in prison by a court in Tehran after being convicted of spying for Israel. | |
Aras Amiri, 33, a UK resident who works for the British Council in London, was held in March 2018 on a visit to her unwell grandmother. This year Ms Amiri lost an appeal against a jail term for spying, and her British fiancé, James Tyson, told the BBC she was being used as a "bargaining chip" by Iran's government. |