Supporters of jailed mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe gathered in a vigil outside Downing Street tonight raising their voices in song to call on the British government to help free the charity worker from her prison cell in Iran.
Free Nazanin campaigners and Nazanin’s husband Richard Ratcliffe sang carols and gave speeches on the same spot last Christmas making the same plea.
This will be Nazanin’s second Christmas away from Richard and their three year-old daughter Gabriella after the 38-year-old was seized at Tehran airport as they prepared to come back to their West Hampstead home following a family holiday.
Richard said: “We were singing here a year ago – but this Christmas feels more real. Events in Iran remain confused and confusing, and we have had a very rough few months. But now at least we do have momentum.
“The foreign secretary Boris Johnson has promised to leave no stone unturned. Thanks to the care of so many people, Nazanin is no longer in the shadows.
“I don’t yet allow myself to fully embrace hope, but I certainly allow myself to wonder. Wouldn’t it be great if they could both come home, if the foreign secretary could make it happen? Then it really would be a happy new year,” he said.
Nazanin is due to appear in court in Iran on Sunday facing a further charge of plotting against the Iranian regime.
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