Vigil to be held for British-Iranian mother jailed in Iran

A vigil for a British-Iranian mother imprisoned in Tehran will be held later today.

Charity worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was jailed for five years last September for allegedly attempting to overthrow the Iranian government.

The vigil, which is being held outside the Iranian Embassy in London from 4pm, marks one year since the Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian and other US-Iranian dual-nationals were released from prison in Iran.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, from north-west London, was arrested at Tehran Airport in April whilst she was with her daughter.

The 38-year-old appealed against her sentence earlier in January, but no decision has been communicated by Iranian authorities, according to Amnesty International.

The charity organisation, who have arranged Monday's vigil, said Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has suffered a serious decline in her physical and mental health.

Amnesty spokeswoman Kathy Voss said: "With other dual-nationals getting released in Iran, it's ever more worrying that Nazanin and other UK-Iranians are still languishing behind bars.

"This vigil is about keeping Nazanin's case in the minds of the authorities back in Tehran. We urgently need to see Nazanin freed and allowed to return to Britain with her young daughter."

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband, Richard Ratcliffe, will attend the vigil and deliver a letter to the Iranian Embassy renewing his call for her release.

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http://www.itv.com/news/2017-01-16/vigil-to-be-held-for-british-iranian-mother-jailed-in-iran/