Iran detainee Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe has British passport returned, MP Tulip Siddiq says

The British-Iranian charity worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has had her British passport returned, her MP Tulip Siddiq has confirmed.

Ms Siddiq says she understands there is a British negotiating team in Tehran where the mum-of-one is currently staying, at her family home.

The MP for Hampstead and Kilburn tweeted: "I am very pleased to say that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been given her British passport back.

"She is still at her family home in Tehran.

“I also understand that there is a British negotiating team in Tehran right now.

"I will keep posting updates as I get them."

Her lawyer Hojjat Kermani has also said: “I am hopeful that we will have good news soon.”

The mayor of London Sadiq Khan tweeted: “Whilst it’s positive news that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has her British passport back, she must now be reunited with her family in the UK.

“Nazanin has suffered terribly over the last six years. London continues to stand with her as we fervently hope for her return to our city. “

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe from West Hampstead, Camden was arrested on April 3 2016 in Tehran Airport under bogus spying charges.

She was returning home to the UK after visiting her family in Iran.

She has been detained in Iran for almost six years.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, along with a number of British-Iranian dual citizens including Lewisham father-of-two, Anoosheh Ashoori are being held hostage by Iran over a reported £400million arms debt owed to them by the UK.

Earlier in the month, husband Richard Ratcliffe told LondonWorld that he has kept up hope that Nazanin could be reunited with him and daughter Gabriella, seven, soon.

He said: “We all live our lives one day at a time and actually our situation has lasted six years but it wasn’t inevitable that it would last six years.”

“There was always the potential that things could end quite soon and there’s no point in getting too down about stuff.

“Part of what keeps hope going is the fact that it could be over soon.”

Mr Ratcliffe has embarked on two hunger strikes to raise attention to his wife’s detention.