British-Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert arrived back in Australia on Friday and will soon reunite with her family after more than two years in an Iranian prison.
Ms Moore-Gilbert was met by public health officials and members of the Australian Defence Force after leaving her plane at Canberra Airport, less than 24 hours after being released from prison in Iran.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne has said Ms Moore-Gilbert, 33, will have to undergo quarantine due to Covid-19 concerns.
The academic from Melbourne University was released after 804 days behind bars on spying charges. She was freed in exchange for the release of three Iranians who were held in Thailand.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that the exchanges was a result of more than one year of intensive diplomatic efforts with Thailand and Australia.
“The exchange took place in Tehran airport – meaning the three Iranians were first freed and entered Tehran, and then the Australian prisoner was allowed to go,” the Iranian news agency Irna quoted him as saying.
Australian officials have declined to comment on the prisoner exchange, while Thai officials said the return of three Iranians involved in a botched 2012 bomb plot in Bangkok was a prisoner transfer.
Australian media reported on Friday that Iranian authorities had detained Ms Moore-Gilbert after discovering she was in a relationship with an Israeli citizen, which led to claims she was a spy for Israel.
Fairfax media said the discovery of Moore-Gilbert’s Israeli boyfriend led to Iranian authorities stopping her at Tehran's airport as she was about to leave the country in 2018 after attending an academic conference. Authorities sentenced her to 10 years in prison for espionage. The Australian government and Ms Moore-Gilbert rejected the allegations as baseless.
Fairfax reported that the Australian government played a crucial behind-the-scenes role in bringing Thailand to the table and engineering the prisoner swap. It cited unidentified government sources as saying the at-times delicate negotiations took more than six months.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday he was “thrilled and relieved” that Ms Moore-Gilbert had been released but added that it would take time for her to process her “horrible” ordeal.
“The tone of her voice was very uplifting, particularly given what she has been through,” Mr Morrison told Australia’s Network Nine.
Despite her ordeal, Ms Moore-Gilbert said in a statement that she had “nothing but respect, love and admiration for the great nation of Iran and its warm-hearted, generous and brave people.”
Asked about the swap, Mr Morrison said he “wouldn’t go into those details, confirm them one way or the other.” However, he said he could assure Australians there had been nothing done to prejudice their safety and no prisoners were released in Australia.
