Robert Pether 'extremely malnourished' after four years in Iraqi jail

Dubai resident facing serious health issues after conditional release in Baghdad

Robert Pether had been detained in Baghdad since 2021. Photo: Desree Pether

A Dubai resident is seriously unwell after being conditionally released from prison in Iraq, his family revealed to The National.

Robert Pether, from Australia, along with his Egyptian co-worker Khaled Radwan, who both resided in Dubai at the time, were jailed in August 2021 and fined $12 million after a contract dispute between his employer and authorities in Iraq.

Despite his release, Mr Pether is still barred from leaving Iraq and Australian authorities say he continues to face legal proceedings. However, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the development was a “positive development”.

“We're just numb. We are relieved and we aren’t. It's great that he's out of prison,” his wife Desree told The National. “It was day 11,520 yesterday.”

Health challenges

Ms Pether revealed that she spoke to her husband on a video call on Thursday and shared her anguish at seeing him visibly fragile and unwell.

“[It] was the first time we've seen him since he was arrested, except for that photo that was released a few years ago. Actually seeing him was quite a shock to see how much he had deteriorated. He’s unrecognisable to the man we remember.”

She added that he has had intestinal issues for the past four months, only being able to eat rice, cereal and potatoes.

“He's extremely malnourished, and like skin and bone,” she said. “He was a size XL before he was arrested and now he would be a small, medium men’s. His clothes are just hanging off him. He looks very bad, so it was quite a shock.”

Mr Pether also has gallstones and an enlarged prostate, she said, stating that he has been “plagued by illness” in recent months.

“The prison did take him to the hospital and they did a bunch of tests, but we still don't know what's wrong with him,” she added.

Looking ahead

Ms Pether also explained how the guards at Mr Pether’s prison in Baghdad have been “very good to him”, adding that it’s now a concern for him to be by himself in a hotel.

“He's blacked out a few times with low blood sugar, so it is quite a concern that he's now by himself,” she said. Looking ahead, she now wants to see her husband be allowed to leave Iraq so he can be with his family in Ireland.

“He's going to need some pretty intensive medical treatment when he comes here to be with us in Ireland,” she said. “When I spoke to him last night, he was on a high and he just couldn't believe he was out.

“Today he's exhausted because he didn't sleep well last night because he's been in a situation with a lot of people around him 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for over 4 years, and to then be in a room quietly by yourself in darkness is a completely different experience.”

"I know the personal toll Mr Pether's detention has taken on him and his family and hope this news brings a measure of relief after years of distress," Ms Wong said in a statement.

Simon Harris, Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister, said in a statement that Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein had contacted him to confirm the release of Mr Pether.

"I welcomed this as a first step to his being allowed to return to his family in Roscommon," Mr Harris said. But there are concerns about Mr Pether’s health and any outstanding charges against him, he added.

Contract dispute results in jail

Mr Pether and Mr Radwan were arrested when they travelled to Iraq for what they thought was a routine business meeting. Employed as an engineer in Dubai for CME, Mr Pether was contracted to work on the central bank's headquarters near the Tigris River.

The men were detained at the meeting. They each received a five-year jail sentence and were ordered to pay $12 million by an Iraqi court. The dispute was over a $33 million contract awarded to CME in 2015.

The project was put on hold a year later, with plummeting oil prices and Iraq’s war against ISIS put forward as the main reasons. Work resumed in 2018, with CME working for 39 of the 48 months as set out in the contract.

Payment was received for 32 of those months before being withheld. CME was asked by the central bank to extend the contract by three months to make up for work that was suspended due to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.