Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Edited from an open letter to Tulip Siddiq MP

• I HAVE not seen your comments on the matter of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and foreign secretary Dominic Raab describing Iran as having committed a series of knavish tricks.

Can anything be more knavish than our government’s refusal to refund the money which Iran paid for tanks ordered by the shah before he was overthrown.

The money was received by a government defence trading service, International Military Services and, following international arbitration, now lies in the High Court.

It is widely understood that release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe will follow release of the initial money plus interest; a case of hostage-taking which is widely practised by Iran.

However as the Labour Party, its members, supporters and its elected MPs know well, that hostage-taking is not the principle here.

The government owe this £400million and successive foreign office ministers have instructed that the money, lying in the High Court, be released.

Successive defence ministers have refused to do so on various grounds, such as the money will be used improperly by the Iranian guards, or EU rules do not permit payment to Iran.

The world, which Dominic Raab asserted held the UK in great respect, sees that we are failing to honour a debt.

We are not now restrained by the EU, the money is available, and will have accrued interest while being deposited since 2002. And the world will be relieved when the inhumanely imprisoned Nazanin is released.

Will you please challenge the government to pay its debts and remove this wholly unnecessary hurdle for the release of Nazanin?

JOHN TYMON
Tennyson Road, NW6