DUBAI: The family of British-Iranian aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who has been sentenced to five years in jail in Iran on undisclosed charges, said she has been accused by a Revolutionary Court of acting against national security by cooperating with the BBC.
Iran’s judiciary spokesman said on Sunday that Iranian appeals court confirmed the five-year jail sentence for her.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe was detained in early April as she tried to leave Iran after a visit with her two-year-old daughter.
Her family said in a statement that the appeal “was held in secret, in the presence of a large number of Revolutionary Guards.” Neither Zaghari-Ratcliffe nor her lawyer had been allowed to tell the family what happened at her trial.
However, the family said that at the appeal hearing two new accusations have been raised against her: being the head of recruitment for the BBC Persian service, and knowingly being married to a British spy.
Iran’s judiciary was not immediately available for comment when Reuters attempted to contact officials. Reuters was unable to independently confirm the new accusations.
Speaking in response to Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s jail sentence, Francesca Unsworth, director of the BBC World Service Group, said on Monday:
“Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has never worked for BBC Persian. She worked briefly for BBC Media Action, our international development charity, in a junior administrative capacity.”
Unsworth called on Iranian authorities to urgently re-examine the case.
Iranian authorities have accused the BBC Persian service of trying to overthrow the Islamic Republic, especially after its coverage of widespread protests in Iran over disputed election results in 2009. BBC has denied the allegations.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe works for the Thomson Reuters Foundation, a London-based charity that is independent of Thomson Reuters and operates independently of Reuters News.
“The lack of justice in Nazanin’s case continues to be a stain on Iran,” Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Zaghari-Ratcliffe, said in a statement.
“It is a needless waste of a mother and child’s life for their own political bargains and economic interests.”
Several Iranian dual nationals from the United States, Britain, Canada and France have been detained in the past year and are being kept behind bars on charges including espionage and collaborating with hostile governments.
British-Iranian aid worker sentenced to jail for “cooperation with BBC”
British-Iranian aid worker sentenced to jail for “cooperation with BBC”
Arab News wins 7 prizes at European Newspaper Awards, led by 50th anniversary coverage
- Anniversary special coverage and film won four Awards of Excellence across multiple categories
LONDON: Arab News won seven prizes at the 27th European Newspaper Awards — four for its 50th anniversary coverage and three for other projects — bringing its total to 160 awards since the 2018 relaunch.
The anniversary coverage earned an Award of Excellence in “Supplement for special occasions and anniversary editions,” plus wins in “Multimedia storytelling” for its special web section and two in “Film” and “Animated films” for its documentary.
Additional honors went to the “Spotlight — 2024 in Review” and “Opinion — 2024” print series in the “Sectional front pages nationwide newspaper” category, and a “Visualization” prize for an image from “Opinion — 2024.”
Launched in 1999 by organizer Norbert Kupper, the awards celebrate print and digital innovation. This year’s contest drew newspapers from 22 countries and more than 3,000 entries across 20 categories, despite fewer print submissions due to rising editorial collaborations.
“It’s testament to the skill, versatility and collaboration between the creative and editorial teams at Arab News that the seven awards at this year’s ENAs spanned print, digital and film categories,” commented Omar Nashashibi, head of creative design at Arab News. “These wouldn’t be possible without the world-class contributors we partner with, and the leadership, vision and support of Editor-In-Chief Faisal J. Abbas.”
Creative Director Simon Khalil called the film wins especially meaningful. “This recognition means a great deal because this film was never just about marking an anniversary, it was about capturing a defining moment in the evolution of Arab News and the region it represents.
“Telling the story, and drama of the 2018 relaunch, the digital transformation, and the courage to become ‘The Voice of a Changing Region’ was both a responsibility and a privilege.”
Past highlights include the “King Charles III Coronation” special coverage, “Kingdom vs. Captagon” investigation and FIFA Qatar World Cup 2022 special edition.
See more award-winning projects at arabnews.com/greatesthits.
