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| Nazneen was released about six years later |
Nazneen Zaghari Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian woman imprisoned in Iran for almost six years, has returned to Britain after being released.
The release of Nazneen and another British-Iranian citizen, Anusha Ashouri, is being linked to the UK's payment of a multimillion-pound loan to Iran. The loan was part of a failed 40-year-old arms deal.
What was the debt?
The then pro-Western Shah of Iran, who ruled Iran in the 1970s, ordered the purchase of 1,500 Chipton tanks and 250 armored recovery vehicles from Britain, valued at 50 650 million.
The money was paid to a private company, International Military Services IMS, then a subsidiary of the British Ministry of Defense. However, before the overthrow of the Shah in the 1979 Islamic Revolution, only 185 tanks were provided to the Iranian authorities.
Since then, the Iranian government has been trying to recapture non-delivered tanks.
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| Nazneen and another British-Iranian citizen, Anusha Ashori, were released together |
What steps did Iran take?
In 1990, Iran moved the IMS to the International Chamber of Commerce, a global trade organization that deals with trade disputes between countries.
Following the ruling in 2001, the IMS appealed to Iran, although in 2002 it agreed to pay the court 32 328.5 million if the appeal failed.
The appeal hearing was completed in 2009 and the decision was upheld in favor of Iran.
However, the European Union imposed sanctions on Iran in June 2008, and the IMS did not pay Iran.
What has happened since 2009?
The British government has acknowledged that it did not deliver the tanks to which it owes Iran, but said it could not be repaid because Iran was still subject to economic sanctions.
In addition, there was confusion over how much Britain owed to Iran.
The 238.5 million security payment made by the IMS in 2002 has since accumulated considerable interest and the UK has disagreed on how much of this should be paid to Iran.
What does this debt have to do with Nazneen Ratcliffe?
Nazneen, who is from Iran but is a British citizen, was detained in Iran in April 2016 and spent almost six years in prison on charges of alleged conspiracy against the Iranian government. During this time he always declared himself innocent.
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| Iran orders 1,500 captain tanks from Britain (pictured here is a 1968 British Army photo |
Nazneen said he had been told by his captors that his imprisonment was linked to the fact that Britain had not paid its debt.
In 2021, former Secretary of State Jeremy Hunt said Iran was linking Nazneen's case to the British debt.
"I think they are trying to take advantage of this issue to settle the old debt related to the chief tanks," he said.
However, the British government did not acknowledge that Nazneen's arrest and the imprisonment of retired engineer Anusha Ashori were linked to the money.
In 2021, Nazneen's husband began protesting in central London.
How was the matter settled?
After months of talks between British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and his Iranian counterpart, Zaghari Ratcliffe and Mr Ashouri were released.
Murad Tehbaz, another dual citizen, has also been released from prison in Iran as part of the deal.
The British Foreign Secretary has announced that the United Kingdom has settled its debt in exchange for the release of prisoners.
He told MPs that as a result of "extremely complex" negotiations, the government had found a way to pay off its debt and that the payment complied with existing sanctions, international anti-terrorism financing laws and money laundering regulations.
He said the terms would be kept secret, but added that Iran could only use the funds for humanitarian purposes.
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