Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe recently experienced a six-year nightmare in an Iranian prison. Her story has captured the world’s attention, illuminating the powerful intersection of geopolitics and human tragedy. Arrested on a visit back to see her family in 2016, Zaghari-Ratcliffe was accused of spying and trying to undermine the Iranian government. Her husband, Richard Ratcliffe, led a high-profile and unquenchable campaign for her release. Yet he had to navigate a diplomatic gauntlet of contentious relationship-building and a volatile UK political scene.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s imprisonment began when she was detained at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport after a visit to Iran with their daughter, Gabriella. The couple’s daughter was only two years old at the time of her mother’s arrest. Zaghari-Ratcliffe was charged with espionage for MI6 and “contagion of women’s empowerment,” charges her supporters have challenged as trumped-up vigorously. The impact of her separation from her daughter and the extreme conditions of her confinement took a serious toll on her family.
Throughout the six years, Richard Ratcliffe experienced the instability of five foreign secretaries—Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt, Dominic Raab, Liz Truss, and James Cleverly—while advocating for his wife’s release. His persistent campaign included public demonstrations, a petition that garnered 780,000 signatures, and a heartbreaking letter delivered to former Prime Minister David Cameron demanding action.
Ratcliffe’s determination reached a peak in 2021 when he undertook a hunger strike to draw attention to his wife’s plight. Fast forward to day 18 of the strike. This extreme measure was both an attempt to force the British government’s hand and bring attention to their dire plight. Through his courageous act, he brought into sharp focus his own pain and the pain of so many families desperate to escape the chaos and violence of politics today.
In late 2018, Ratcliffe began publicly advocating for the main cause of his wife’s detention. Most thought it was related to the UK’s longstanding debt to Iran over a cancelled arms deal. In 1971, the Shah of Iran was the first to make such a full payment, for 1,500 Chieftain tanks. The revolution that toppled his regime cancelled the agreement. Given this historical context, the British government was reluctant to clear this debt, owing to the current ongoing sanctions on Iran.
Liz Truss drops a bombshell. After several years of difficult negotiations, she announced that the unied Kingdom would pay back almost £400 million owed to Iran. On the same day that payment was made, Zaghari-Ratcliffe had finally been granted permission to fly home. This moment signified a bittersweet close to her traumatic ordeal.
“Show me the bloody receipt.” – Richard Ratcliffe (via Joseph Fiennes)
Joseph Fiennes recently starred as Ratcliffe in a BBC dramatization of this story. He told Richard that despite the years of struggle, he was impressed by his tenacity during the whole ordeal. He noted how tenacious Ratcliffe was in his pursuit of justice for those killed and accountability from the federal government.
“He felt the British government would have it in hand, but that wasn’t the case. He was just lied to, lied to and lied to.” – Joseph Fiennes
Fiennes drew attention to the emotional cost that this battle had taken on both Zaghari-Ratcliffe and her husband. He felt the need to convey the immeasurable depth of their love. He wanted to capture their spirit and resilience despite unfathomable loss through his art.
Narges Rashidi, who portrayed Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe in the dramatization, spoke on her character’s change throughout the course of her detention.
“That is a very different Nazanin to six years later. I saw somebody extremely petrified and extremely soft, not knowing what is happening to her. I met her strength later, after this whole ordeal.” – Narges Rashidi
Rashidi underscored the positive effects of Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s ordeal. It touches the souls of every single American who sees or hears about the plight of the people in these totalitarian regimes. She also emphasized that their connection as a couple is exceptional and a model for others to follow.
“Their bond as a couple extraordinary. To a point where, when I was reading it, I was saying to my husband [Christian Straka], ‘You’d better fight for me this hard.’” – Narges Rashidi
Jenna Fiennes, producer of the film, underlined that their love story goes beyond just romance. It’s an inspiring story of the human spirit’s ability to overcome incredible challenges.
“It’s not really a love story. But then it is, in terms of the profound nature of love as a sort of salve, if you like, to survival.” – Joseph Fiennes
The ordeal has raised broader questions about human rights and the treatment of individuals unjustly accused in politically charged environments. In his closing comments Fiennes reflected on what it means for our society when such stories are common place.
“It clearly goes on, and innocent people and families are completely disrupted and tarred for life. And now I’ve told this story, I look at anyone that might be accused of something, and I don’t quite believe it.” – Joseph Fiennes
Her campaign, at once a lily pad for personal sacrifice and a quagmire of political contortion, demonstrates both personal sacrifice and political entanglement. Richard Ratcliffe never stopped calling for transparency and accountability from his government while living under the heavy weight of emotional and psychological trauma.