Jailed Briton Morad Tahbaz has ended his hunger-strike in Iran's Evin prison after the collapse of the deal between the UK and Iranian governments that was supposed to lead to him being freed, his family has said.
Mr Tahbaz, who has British, Iranian and US citizenship, finished his protest on day nine at the request of his family who feared further health problems. He has been treated for cancer during his time behind bars.
The 66-year-old conservationist was part of an agreement struck between the two governments that saw the UK pay an arms deal debt of nearly £400 million ($527m) while two dual-nationals held on trumped-up charges came back to Britain.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 43, and Anoosheh Ashoori, 67, arrived back in the UK on March 17 but Mr Tahbaz, who was born in London, was taken back to jail after a brief period at home in Tehran.
British officials said it was to have an ankle tag fitted but his anticipated release to a hotel did not happen. He remains at Evin jail where he is serving a 10-year sentence accused of spying for the US but his supporters say he is being used as a negotiating tool in a broader diplomatic battle by Tehran.
“We’ve been told by the [UK’s] Foreign Office that they're working on everything, that it is more complicated, because he's being seen as American,” his daughter Roxanne told the BBC.
“But ultimately, he's stuck in this political chess game, but as a pawn, and we feel that no one's really protecting him now, because this country's left him behind and being British and British-born, no less, really should have saved him from that fate.”
She said the promise made to them was broken that Mr Tahbaz would be part of the release deal and that a travel ban on his wife in Iran would be lifted.
She said UK government comments that he had been released from prison were “devastating” because the family did not want him to be forgotten or for people to stop fighting for him because they thought he was safe at home.
“Because he's not home. He's still in prison. He's still not free. And it was really essential to us and I think to him as well, that he not be forgotten and left there to wither away," she said.
“I think it's time for him to be back with his family.”
Mr Tahbaz was part of a group of conservationists from the Tehran-based Persian Wildlife Heritage Foundation which had been licensed to operate in Iran by the government, but they were arrested in January 2018.
A senior figure from the group died while interrogations were held at Evin prison, said the US-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran. The eight were convicted after a case based partly on a retracted forced confession.
The UK government said it was working closely with the US to secure his permanent release and departure from Iran.
Naga
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Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Retail gloom
Online grocer Ocado revealed retail sales fell 5.7 per cen in its first quarter as customers switched back to pre-pandemic shopping patterns.
It was a tough comparison from a year earlier, when the UK was in lockdown, but on a two-year basis its retail division, a joint venture with Marks&Spencer, rose 31.7 per cent over the quarter.
The group added that a 15 per cent drop in customer basket size offset an 11.6. per cent rise in the number of customer transactions.
RESULTS
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MATCH INFO
Newcastle 2-2 Manchester City
Burnley 0-2 Crystal Palace
Chelsea 0-1 West Ham
Liverpool 2-1 Brighton
Tottenham 3-2 Bournemouth
Southampton v Watford (late)
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
