The son of a British woman being held in Iran on espionage charges has said speaking to her on the phone for the first time in 213 days felt like “five birthdays and 10 Christmases at once”.
Lindsay and Craig Foreman, both 52, were arrested on 3 January in Kerman, southern Iran, while travelling through the country from Armenia to Pakistan on a round-the-world motorbike trip.
Their family had not had direct contact with the couple since their incarceration seven months ago until Tuesday, when they were able to speak for the first time. They were also informed the couple had been transferred to separate Iranian prisons in and near Tehran.
“To hear your mum’s voice after so long, your rock, your guide, someone you’ve missed more than you can even express, it’s like five birthdays and 10 Christmases all at once,” said Lindsay’s son, Joe Bennett.
“I’ll be replaying that call in my head over and over again. It reminded me of what really matters: love, connection, and knowing they’re still with us.”
Bennett, 31, said it was difficult to put the eight-minute phone call on Tuesday morning into words. They shared tears and laughs, and for a moment it felt as though the weight of the past seven months had been lifted, he said.
While the family said the phone calls provided joy and relief, they continue to urge the government to secure the couple’s release. The couple have received calls from British embassy officials, but their family said they should be allowed to receive consular and medical visits.
The family learned on Monday that Lindsay had been transferred to Qarchak women’s prison, south of Tehran. Human rights groups have repeatedly criticised the dire conditions reported there.
Bennett said his mother sounded in good spirits, and described the prison conditions as OK and hot. She has befriended those in prison with her and asked that they try to send her some literature beyond the children’s books available. They shared a laugh, he said, when his mother recalled being transferred to the prison on a plane and Bennett joked that “it was like something out of a movie”.
“I know that potentially the call is monitored but I heard in her voice that she is doing mentally OK,” said Bennett. “Both her and Craig, they seemed both mentally strong.”
Craig has been moved to Tehran’s central prison, also known as Fashafouyeh, which is about 30km (18 miles) south of the capital and has similar notoriety.
The confirmation of the couple’s location and the first phone call since their incarceration came a month after the family’s first public plea for the British government to raise the couple’s case at the highest levels in negotiations with Iran.
The couple have been charged with espionage after entering Iran from Armenia. They said they had intended to stay for only four days before crossing into Pakistan. The family have called the charges against them baseless.
“They are not spies. The British government knows they are not spies. It must say so publicly, unequivocally and immediately,” Bennett said.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: “We are deeply concerned by reports that two British nationals have been charged with espionage in Iran. We continue to raise this case directly with the Iranian authorities.”
