LONDON: Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe should not have to face abuse on social media over her criticism of the government’s efforts to free her, says No. 10 Downing Street.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 43, has faced online abuse after saying at a press conference that she should have been freed “six years ago.”
But an official spokesperson for Boris Johnson said: “Clearly, someone who has been through this sort of ordeal, as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has, should not have to face any sort of abuse, social media or otherwise.
“She has been through an unimaginable ordeal, and we are extremely pleased that she is now reunited with her family.”
Zaghari-Ratcliffe pointed out that she had been jailed while five separate foreign secretaries took the reigns of the UK’s Foreign Office — and only Liz Truss had finally managed to free her.
“As a UK citizen, someone in a free and democratic country, she is rightly able to voice her opinion on any topic she wishes,” said No. 10’s spokesperson.
It is widely thought that Zaghari-Ratcliffe was finally returned to the UK after London agreed to settle a historic debt to Iran worth around $530 million related to an undelivered arms deal, canceled by the British after the Iranian Revolution of 1979.
Both the Iranian and British governments have denied a connection between the events.
Following Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s comments at the press conference — in which she also declined to thank Truss — the term “ungrateful” trended on Twitter as social media users suggested she should have been more thankful for official efforts to free her.
But former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “Those criticizing Nazanin have got it so wrong. She doesn’t owe us gratitude: we owe her an explanation.
He continued: “She’s absolutely right that it took too long to bring her home. I tried my best — as did other foreign secretaries — but if trying our best took six years then we must be honest and say the problem should have been solved earlier.”
Hunt also suggested that an independent inquiry should be established to understand why it took so long to free the mother-of-one — a decision that has been agreed to in principle by the government.
It has not yet been formally agreed to, however, and MPs reportedly have concerns about starting an inquiry until Zaghari-Ratcliffe and any other ex-detainees are ready to give evidence.
