Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe 'shackled to bed' in psychiatric ward

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was sent to Imam Khomeini hospital after a lengthy hunger strike (Picture: PA)

Jailed British-Iranian mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been moved back to Iranian prison after she was shackled to a bed in a hospital psychiatric ward, her husband said.

Richard Ratcliffe released a statement on Monday saying: “Nazanin has been returned from psychiatric hospital, and is now back in Evin prison."

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, 41, described her ordeal in Tehran’s Iman Khomeini hospital as “torture”, according to reports.

In quotes released by her family to the Huffington Post, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe said: "I am all right, broken, but I survived.

Husband Richard Ratcliffe outside the Iranian Embassy in London. He went on hunger strike out of solidarity with his wife and only stopped once she did (EPA)

"They did all they could to me – handcuffs, ankle cuffs, in a private room 2x3m, with thick curtains, and the door closed all the time. I wasn’t allowed to leave the room, as I was chained to the bed.

"It was proper torture, it was tough, and I was struggling."

Before being transferred to Iman Khomeini hospital, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe reportedly told relatives: "I was healthy and happy when I came to Iran to see my parents.

"Three and a bit years later and I am admitted to a mental health clinic.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe with her husband Richard Ratcliffe and their daughter Gabriella, before her arrest in 2016 (PA)

"Look at me now, I ended up in an asylum. It should be an embarrassment.

"Prison is getting harder and harder for me. I hate being played in the middle of a political game. I just hate it."

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, an aid worker with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested at the end of a two-week family holiday in April 2016.

She was jailed for five years on spying charges, which she denies.

Her transfer to the psychiatric hospital came after she went on a 15-day hunger strike last month in protest at her "unfair imprisonment".

Mr Ratcliffe also refused food over the period, in solidarity with his wife, as he camped on the pavement outside London’s Iranian Embassy.

Richard Ratcliffe has not been able to see his daughter in person in three years (EPA)

Last week, he continued his campaign for his wife’s return to the UK, calling on Britain to step up its efforts.

He said on Thursday: “The longer she is left isolated, particularly in the control of the RG, whose job it is to be tough — the more ominous it gets.

“We are telling the Government to put pressure ... [so] that someone can get in to see her and just check she’s okay.”

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s daughter Gabriella, was taken to live with her grandparents and has not returned to the UK