Boris Johnson urged to repay £400m debt to Iran to help free Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe as daughter returns to UK to start school

‘If the government is listening you need to pay the debt back so that my constituent Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is released,’ says MP

Boris Johnson has been urged to repay a £400m debt to Iran in order to open “channels” in the effort to secure Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s release from prison in Tehran.

The demand comes just hours after the British-Iranian’s daughter returned to the UK for the first time since Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s imprisonment on allegations of spying in 2016.

The five-year-old was reunited on Thursday evening with her father, Richard Ratcliffe, who has been tirelessly campaigning for his wife’s release from Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.

Their daughter, Gabriella, who has been living in Iran with her grandparents for three and a half years, is now expected to start school in London.

Speaking at a press conference in Westminster, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s local MP, Tulip Siddiq, demanded Downing Street now pay the Iranian regime a historic debt in an effort to secure her constituent’s release.

“I have now dealt with three prime ministers, three foreign secretaries, four Middle East ministers about this case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe,” Ms Siddiq said on Friday.

She continued: “Every single one of those politicians has looked me in the eye and said that this has nothing to do with the debt we owe Iran. But we know that’s not true – we owe Iran £400m.

“This is money that we legally owe Iran. Our country owes Iran the money and once we pay it perhaps we will have a channel of communication to speak through because at the moment we’re holding back money that they should have.

“If the government is listening you need to pay the debt back so that my constituent Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is released and is brought back to West Hampstead where she belongs, with her husband and her daughter.”

Britain owes Iran about £400m for a cancelled arms deal in the 1970s it was forced to abort after the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The British government received the money, but never delivered on the hundreds of tanks ordered by Iran.

Mr Ratcliffe also urged the prime minister to meet with him at the earliest opportunity in order to hasten his wife’s release from Iran.

Richard Ratcliffe (centre) and Tulip Siddiq (right) at today’s press conference (Tulip Siddiq) (tulip-siddiq)

“We have been caught in the middle of a gun fight,” he said referring to escalating diplomatic tensions. “We will be looking to meet with Boris as soon as possible. This is an area he can make a difference.”

Mr Johnson has previously faced intense criticism over his handling of the case, and was forced to clarify his remarks in 2017 as he erroneously suggested Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe had been training journalists in Iran.

Appearing at the press conference, Mr Ratcliffe was also joined by his daughter who sat on his lap as he spoke to the media about how “lovely” it’s been to have her back in his arms.

The five-year-old cut up some “celebration” cake as her father answered questions. “She’s told mummy that she will see her back in London,” he said. “She’s promised mummy she’s going to be brave.

“One of the things she really didn’t want to happen was her daughter to leave while she was still in prison,” he added.