LATEST: Documentary captures Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's emotional homecoming
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe went being from an ordinary wife and mother living in London to a household name in 2016 when she was detained in Iran while on a visit to see her family.
Separated from her daughter Gabriella, a toddler at the time, and subjected to vigorous interrogations by authorities, the UK-Iranian was later sentenced to five years in prison for allegedly plotting to overthrow the regime.
She has always denied the charge.
In March of this year the now 44-year-old was released by Iran along with another British-Iranian hostage, Anoosheh Ashoori.
The breakthrough came after the UK settled a £400 million ($482 million) debt with the isolated nation, dating back to the 1970s. Both governments denied a link between the historic arrears and the release of Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe.
So what has she done in the nine months since being reunited with her husband Richard Ratcliffe and young daughter?
Criticism of UK government
In her first interview with reporters days after she touched down in the UK, the former aid worker did not offer any credit to the UK government. Instead, she said the repeated assurances from London that her release was imminent led to her losing trust in the government.
She also questioned why four foreign secretaries had failed to secure her release. Liz Truss, the fifth person to hold the position during Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s detention, agreed to settle Iran's 40-year-old claim in relation to a cancelled order for a British Chieftain tank.
“How many foreign secretaries does it take for someone to come home? Five?” she said at a press conference in London shortly after returning to the UK. “It should have been one of them eventually. So now here we are. What’s happened now should have happened six years ago.”
She also accused the UK Foreign Office of being complicit in forcing her to sign a letter of false confession to the Iranian government as part of the last-minute terms of her release. Amanda Milling, who was the UK’s Middle East minister at the time, said she was not forced to sign a confession, but instead advised that the Iranians would not allow her to leave unless she agreed.
Strained meeting with fomer prime minister
The former prisoner, her husband and daughter met Boris Johnson, the prime minister at the time, at No 10 Downing Street in May.
Mr Ratcliffe said Mr Johnson failed to apologise “explicitly” to his long-suffering wife after she told him about the “massive impact” his false claim had on her detention.
Mr Johnson, known for making gaffes in public, was lambasted by Mr Ratcliffe in 2017 for wrongly claiming his wife had been training journalists in Iran at the time of her arrest.
The claim was seized on by Iran as evidence to back up its narrative that the mother-of-one was involved in a plan to overthrow the regime.
Speaking on the steps of Downing Street, Mr Ratcliffe told of how his wife laid bare the immense impact Mr Johnson’s words had on her situation.
Asked if the prime minister had apologised, Mr Ratcliffe responded: “Not explicitly.”
Hair cut in solidarity with protesters
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has pledged to continue fighting for the freedoms of Iranians following her ordeal.
In September she filmed herself cutting her hair in protest over the detention and subsequent death of Mahsa Amini, which sparked mass protests in Iran. The demonstrations, which are still continuing, started after Ms Amini died in custody after being arrested on September 13 for allegedly wearing a hijab in an improper way.
In a show of support for protesters in her native country, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe chopped off chunks of her hair in the footage as she named Iranians who had allegedly suffered at the hands of the repressive regime.
She said she made the gesture “for the women of my land, for freedom, for justice”.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe reunited with family — in pictures
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Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe reunited with her husband, Richard Ratcliffe, and their daughter, Gabriella, after being held for six years in Iran. Photo: @TulipSiddiq via Twitter -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori, centre, with their families. Photo: @lilika49 via Twitter -
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her daughter at RAF Brize Norton airbase. EPA -
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her daughter Gabriella, husband Richard and British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss at RAF Brize Norton. EPA -
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori were released in March 2022. Reuters -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori with the cabin crew in Brize Norton. Reuters -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori as their plane flies over London. Reuters -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe sits in a plane en route to London after taking off from Teheran. Reuters -
Mr Ashoori gestures as he sits in the plane heading to London. Reuters -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested in Tehran in April 2016 as she prepared to fly back to the UK, having taken her daughter Gabriella to see relatives. AFP -
She was accused of plotting to overthrow the Iranian government and sentenced to five years in jail, spending four years in Tehran’s Evin Prison and one under house arrest. Photo: Tulip Siddiq / Twitter -
Richard Ratcliffe with daughter Gabriella outside their house in London on Wednesday. AFP -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori arrive in Oman en route to the UK. Photo: @badralbusaidi / Twitter -
Mr Ratcliffe went on a hunger strike in October 2021 in protest at the UK government’s failure to secure his wife's release. AFP -
Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe boards a plane as she prepares to leave Tehran. Reuters -
Mr Ratcliffe told the media that the family plan to find solace elsewhere for a few days. Reuters -
Gabriella was not yet two when her mother was arrested. Photo: Tulip Siddiq / Twitter
Woman of the Year
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s name appeared alongside Queen Elizabeth II in this year’s Harper’s Bazaar Women of the Year Awards.
The luxury fashion magazine’s annual ceremony, which took place at Claridge’s in London, was presented by Nicholas Hoult, Lashana Lynch and Lesley Manville, among other stars.
Lydia Slater, the editor-in-chief of Harper’s Bazaar, said: “Our talented winners have made some extraordinary contributions to the realms of fashion, film, art, literature, music and activism.
“We are delighted to have been able to celebrate these truly inspirational women in the company of our friends and supporters.”
Memoir on 'fear, faith and survival'
In October it was announced that the former detainee would release a memoir detailing her ordeal. The book, published by Penguin Random House, is expected to hit the shelves in autumn 2023.
Mrs Zaghari’s Ratcliffe will write the story with the help of her spouse, who for years tirelessly campaigned for her release.
Speaking about her upcoming book, she said her “story as a hostage is unique, but it is also the story of many other women in Iran in prison who are unknown but have helped me enormously to go through this journey and come out of it stronger”.
The mother-of-one said her harrowing tale will touch on “my own uncertainty, fear, faith, survival, hope and love but also the story of unity and solidarity from so many others.”
“Their struggles continue today,” she added.
Return to domestic life
Mr Ratcliffe, an accountant living in north London, has continued to support his wife after her release.
He was praised by campaigners for refusing to give up on his wife during her years in prison, and even went on hunger strike in a bid to pressure the UK government to take action.
As news broke in March that his wife was on a plane to the UK, he said he was looking forward to the “beginning of new life” with his spouse. He said he and seven-year-old Gabriella were excited about being a “normal family” again.
Mrs Zaghari Ratcliffe will guest edit BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Wednesday.
