British mum Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe discovers she ISN’T suffering from cancer after health scare in Iranian prison
This week marks the first point Nazanin can be considered for early release
THE BRITISH mum who is in prison in Iran has finally received good news as it emerged she is NOT suffering from cancer, it emerged today.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe recently found lumps on her breasts - but they are responding to treatment and not believed to be serious, her family revealed.
In another boost for the suffering Brit, this week marks the first point when she can legally be considered for early release from the hellhole jail where she is being held.
But Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe is still being tormented by nonstop lies pumped out about her on Iranian TV, and has told relatives: “I just want to be a normal person again.”
Hardliners in the country’s Islamic regime accuse the 38-year-old mother of spreading propaganda and plotting against the state.
They have exploited a gaffe by Boris Johnson since the Foreign Secretary mistakenly said Nazanin was “teaching journalism” in Iran at the time she was arrested last year - when in fact she was only on holiday.
Last week, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe faced fresh torment when she found lumps on her breasts, prompting fears she could have cancer or another serious illness.
On Saturday, she went to see a specialist who told her the lumps are responding to treatment and are “very likely” not to be cancerous - although she will need close examination and another ultrasound in the New Year.
This week will mark Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s 600th day in prison - meaning that she has served a third of her five-year sentence.
Under Iranian law, she is now potentially eligible for early release, and her lawyer will this week lobby the courts to let her out and end her 19-month ordeal.
This week will mark Nazanin’s 600th day in prison - meaning that she has served a third of her five-year sentence.
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was jailed for five years in April last year after being convicted of plotting to overthrow the clerical establishment.
- She denied the charges saying she was on holiday taking her daughter to meet the girl's grandparents.
- In October, Nazanin was told she faced new charges with prosecutors alleging she joined organisations which specifically worked to overthrow the government.
- Boris Johnson then told a parliamentary inquiry on November 1 that Nazanin had been teaching journalism when she was originally arrested.
- Iranian state TV used these comments as apparent proof she was plotting against the state.
- Nazanin was later taken to an unscheduled court hearing where she was threatened with another five years in prison.
But in October she was told she faces new charges with prosecutors alleging she joined organisations which specifically worked to overthrow the government.
Mr Johnson then gave incorrect evidence to a committee of MPs on November 1 that she had been teaching journalism when she was originally arrested.
Iranian state TV seized on these comments as apparent proof she was plotting against the state.
Nazanin was later taken to an unscheduled court hearing where she was threatened with extra jail time.
She is in the Iranian news on a daily basis, bringing fresh agony but prompting sympathy for her from her fellow inmates.
Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe told relatives: “It is torture to keep hearing these lies on TV. I get very agitated by all the press attention in Iran.
“People tell me here it is all about politics. But I don’t care about the politics. Surely I can be released on humanitarian grounds?
“I cannot wait for this turmoil to end. It keeps me on the edge all the time. I don’t want to be in the news. I just want to be a normal person again, with a normal life with my child.”
Last week, her husband Richard had a meeting with the Foreign Secretary to discuss how to get Nazanin back home and reunite the couple with their young daughter Gabriella, who is being cared for by relatives in Iran.
Mr Ratcliffe is hoping to join Boris on a trip to the country later this year to lobby local politicians in person.
