Fresh call to sanction Iran officials on anniversary of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's release
The UK government is being urged to sanction 10 Iranian officials involved in state hostage-taking on the first anniversary of former Tehran prisoner Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's release.
Redress and the Free Nazanin Campaign are calling on the foreign secretary to act amid an escalation of hostage-taking since Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was released on 16 March 2022 after six years in an Iran jail.
The rise in hostage-taking has coincided with a wave of protests that have swept Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini in September 2022.Iran has arrested over 40 foreign nationals – including seven people with links to the UK – for their alleged support for the anti-government protests.
At least two British-Iranian nationals are currently detained in Iran, Morad Tahabz and Mehran Raoof.
According to Amnesty International, Mr Raoof is being held in solitary confinement, while the UK government has confirmed that Mr Tahbaz has been subjected to “cruel treatment” during his detention. In January 2023, Tehran executed a dual national and British citizen, Alireza Akabari, the first execution of a British citizen since the 1980s.
The UK government have sanctioned just one person - Gholamreza Ziaei, former director of the infamous Evin prison where Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was held - for their role in the mistreatment of foreign detainees.
Magnitsky sanctions, first introduced by the UK government in 2020, enable states to target individuals and entities which are involved in serious violations of human rights by imposing asset freezes and travel bans.
Richard Ratcliffe, Nazanin’s husband, said: “It is a real relief that Nazanin came home a year ago, particularly given how things have deteriorated in Iran. But it is also triggering to see Iran’s hostage diplomacy continue to grow with impunity.
"I am disappointed that the UK has pulled its punches from sanctioning Iran’s hostage takers after the promises made by the former foreign secretary, and that state hostage taking has been dropped as a concern from this week’s new Integrated Review – even as Iran has crossed a threshold and started executing foreign citizens.
"The Foreign Office well knows that hostage taking is a gateway issue for many of the Islamic Republic’s crimes. Our message with this new tranche of names is that if there is no accountability for hostage taking, the Iranian authorities will become more emboldened, and we will all be less safe.
"The anniversary of Nazanin’s release is a good day to start sending a clear message – that the UK will protect its citizens, and not just wring its hands.” Rupert Skilbeck, Director of Redress, said: “The facts speak for themselves: Iran is emboldened in its human rights abuses and is growing its practice of state hostage-taking, which often includes torture or ill-treatment.
"Unless the UK government takes concerted action now to challenge this practice, Iran will continue to abuse human rights to gain greater leverage on the world stage at the expense of victims’ suffering.”
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