Iranian Aras Amiri. Family photo
Iranian Aras Amiri. Family photo
Iranian Aras Amiri. Family photo
Iranian Aras Amiri. Family photo

British Council welcomes reports of staff member being acquitted in Iran


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The British Council on Monday said it welcomed reports that Iran's Supreme Court had acquitted its staff member Aras Amiri, two years after Tehran jailed her for 10 years.

The UK government has condemned the detention of Iranians with dual-UK nationality, or those based in Britain, as hostage-taking aimed at pressuring the West.

"We are aware of and welcome the reports that Aras Amiri Larijani has been acquitted by the Supreme Court in Iran," the British Council, which promotes UK cultural and language relations overseas, told AFP:

"We cannot comment further on the legal aspects of her case."

The chairman of the UK Parliament's foreign affairs committee, Tom Tugendhat, on Monday retweeted a post quoting the Iranian arm of the US-funded Radio Liberty saying Ms Amiri was acquitted.

Tehran has not confirmed her acquittal.

Ms Amiri, a British resident, was detained in May 2018 while on a trip to visit relatives in Iran.

In May 2019, she was jailed for 10 years on charges of "cultural infiltration", a sentence that then-prime minister Theresa May called "utterly shocking".

Amnesty International said last year that she had been temporarily released on "furlough" before being ordered back.

The British Council has not had staff or offices in Iran since 2009. The Iranian government in 2019 announced a ban on all collaboration with the organisation.

Section 375

Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat

Director: Ajay Bahl

Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL

Rating: 3.5/5

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed

Based: Muscat

Launch year: 2018

Number of employees: 40

Sector: Online food delivery

Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception 

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England World Cup squad

Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wkt), Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

Quick pearls of wisdom

Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”

Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.” 

Updated: August 16, 2021, 9:25 PM