Daughter of Briton jailed in Iran says Father’s Day is ‘the hardest day of all’

Independent – June 17th 2022

Nina Lloyd

The daughter of a British man who remains jailed in Iran said Father’s Day is “the hardest day of all” as she accused ministers of snubbing her over his case.

Morad Tahbaz, 66, was returned to custody after being allowed out on furlough on the day Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and fellow dual national Anoosheh Ashoori were freed in March.

His daughter Roxanne Tahbaz delivered a Father’s Day card and gift to the Foreign Office on Thursday, hoping to meet with ministers and be updated on his situation.

ut when she arrived, she was dismayed that her concerns were allegedly turned over to an official from the consular desk, who said they would pass on the message instead.

“It was incredibly dispiriting,” Ms Tahbaz said.

Ahead of the holiday on Sunday, Ms Tahbaz voiced her anguish over the alleged failure to keep a dialogue open with her about measures being taken to secure his release.

“Father’s Day is the hardest day of all,” she said.

“While every day is challenging, special moments like holidays and birthdays are especially difficult for me and my siblings.

“Our father has been unjustly jailed in Iran for nearly four-and-a-half years, but Liz Truss and the Government still haven’t informed us over what they’re doing to secure his release.”

Ms Tahbaz rebuked what she said felt like continual attempts to “placate” her and her siblings with “pleasantries and false promises”, drawing parallels between their situation and the treatment of Richard Ratcliffe and Mr Ashoori’s family before either returned home.

“There doesn’t seem to be any sense of urgency – nothing to suggest the Foreign Secretary and her office feel they need to get my father out of prison immediately,” she said.

Read more on the original:

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/daughter-iran-foreign-office-government-morad-tahbaz-b2103936.html