The trial of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe on Sunday is a rehash of three-year-old allegations accusing her of spreading propaganda against the Iranian regime, her husband said on Wednesday.
Her lawyer viewed the evidence against her after the charity worker was taken before Iran’s notorious “hanging judge”, Abolghassem Salavati, by members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
It looks to have been suddenly taken out of the cupboard unchanged
“It looks to have been suddenly taken out of the cupboard unchanged,” said her husband, Richard Ratcliffe. “No new documents relate to the past two years.”
Mr Ratcliffe and the lawyer want the UK to press Iranian authorities to allow British embassy staff to attend the case on Sunday, which could return Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe to jail.
She has been allowed to live with her parents in Iran since the spring on temporary release while wearing an electronic tag.
Her family said that they expected a new legal threat to Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s freedom but not until early next year, as her final release date neared.
New charges a contrivance to resolve longstanding debt?
They said they were shocked by the dramatic escalation, which showed she was being treated as a hostage by the Iranian regime.
Mr Ratcliffe said that he believed the move was an attempt to push the UK into swiftly resolving an issue over a £380 million debt linked to an arms deal with Iran, which was aborted with the overthrow of the shah in 1979.
The families of other detained British-Iranian dual nationals have also said their relatives are being held as bargaining chips to force the UK to settle the debt.
The latest chapter in the long-running debt saga is in the UK courts, with authorities saying that sanctions against Iran make it hard to repay the money.
“It has become increasingly clear the past months that Nazanin is a hostage, held as leverage against a UK debt,” Mr Ratcliffe said.
“Yesterday hit us hard. We had long been warning the government that the closer we got to the end of Nazanin’s sentence, the more there was a risk of Iran opening again a second case to threaten holding her more.
“But still today it was a surprise. We had been bracing ourselves for something if we went past Christmas – not here and now.”
The prospect of a new trial was first raised in October 2017, the month before then foreign secretary Boris Johnson wrongly told MPs that Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was in Iran to train journalists rather than visit her parents with her young daughter.
The case was closed after Mr Johnson visited Iran in December 2017, but was reopened the following year.
But Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe had not been in front of Judge Salavati in connection with the case since May 2018.
She now fears a return to prison after being held since April 2016 on what her family and supporters maintain are trumped-up charges.
“There is only so much abuse one person can take,” said her husband. “Nazanin was asking today, has she not had her share?
“The government needs to think about who will be taken next, how soft diplomacy stops the spread of state hostage taking.”
Britain's Foreign Office said the new charges were “indefensible and unacceptable".
"We have been consistently clear that she must not be returned to prison," a spokesman said.
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Poland Statement
All people fleeing from Ukraine before the armed conflict are allowed to enter Poland. Our country shelters every person whose life is in danger - regardless of their nationality.
The dominant group of refugees in Poland are citizens of Ukraine, but among the people checked by the Border Guard are also citizens of the USA, Nigeria, India, Georgia and other countries.
All persons admitted to Poland are verified by the Border Guard. In relation to those who are in doubt, e.g. do not have documents, Border Guard officers apply appropriate checking procedures.
No person who has received refuge in Poland will be sent back to a country torn by war.
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
