The British joy of the return of two prisoners in Iran for several years

Relatives of two British-Iranians were sentenced to years in prison in Iran for always denying them on Thursday after returning to England at the end of a long and complicated diplomatic campaign.

Erika Ashoori arrived at dawn, laughing and surrounded by loved ones at Breeze Norton military base in southwestern England, as she posted images of her father's retired engineer Anoshe Ashuori (67) and Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 43 years old.

Ashuori was arrested while visiting her mother in August 2017 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison for espionage on behalf of Israel.

Zaghari-Ratcliffe, an employee of the Thomson Reuters Foundation, a charitable branch of the eponymous news agency, was arrested in April 2016 after visiting her family with her 22-month-old daughter.

Accused of conspiracy to overthrow the Islamic Republic, she was initially sentenced to five years in prison and one more time for another charge.

London reported on Wednesday that it paid an old debt of £39.4 million ($520 million, 470 million euros) to Tehran without linking the two cases, while announcing its release.

Gabriela, the daughter of 7-year-old Zagari-Ratcliffe, greeted her mother with her father, Richard, who had not been seen for more than two years.

His aunt Rebecca Ratcliffe told British television on Thursday that “I slept in bed between the two last night.” “It's a very special moment for the three of us.” She stressed that the little girl “did not spend her childhood with two parents.”

After her mother was arrested in Tehran in 2016, Gabriela lived with her grandparents in Iran before joining her father in England in October 2019.

Rebecca Ratcliffe compared her reunion to “a Christmas morning where she waits for Santa Claus and finally arrives.” “I think I will be in the house or accommodation provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a few days, and I look forward to seeing you on the weekend.” Nazanin's father-in-law John Ratcliffe told the BBC.

He claimed to be “incredibly proud” of his son, who had been tirelessly campaigning for six years, including a hunger strike to secure his wife's release.

British Foreign Minister James Cleverly told Sky News that the Iranian government's change “certainly helped” advance “incredibly difficult” negotiations.