British man jailed in Iran criticises Government for abandonment in war zone

A British man who has been jailed alongside his wife for 10 years in Iran for spying has criticised the Government for abandoning them in a war zone.

Speaking from prison, Craig Foreman said he and his partner, Lindsay, feel “let down, alone and completely frustrated” with how their situation is being handled.

The 53-year-olds were jailed following their arrest in January 2025 while travelling through Iran during an around-the-world trip by motorcycle.

The couple, from East Sussex, and being held in Tehran’s Evin Prison after they were detained and sentenced on charges of espionage, which they deny.

The Foreign Office have described the jail sentences the pair received as “completely appalling and totally unjustifiable” – saying their welfare is a “priority” for the Government.

In a statement, Mr Foreman called on the Government to “step out of the shadows and help us”.

He said: “We are both currently serving 14 months into a 10-year prison sentence in Evin Prison, Tehran, for crimes that were never committed; spying for the UK and Israel.

“We were charged based on falsified evidence that was fabricated to suit the maximum sentence.

“Our Government are fully aware of this information and know we are 100% innocent.

“We are proud to be British, but by now we feel let down, alone, and completely frustrated by the lack of public defence by the people in charge of the Government.”

He continued: “It’s very difficult to understand why our innocence has not been said publicly. We are not spies. The charges against us are simply not true.

“I am asking you, Sir Keir Starmer, Yvette Cooper, Hamish Falconer and Hugo Shorter, you know we are innocent.

“Go public with the information – you have to clearly step up, step out of the shadows and help us. Our lives are constantly at risk.

“We are now in a prison in a war zone. We have gone from a challenging situation to a life-threatening situation.

“You have chosen to give us zero information on what’s happening to us, what to do and where to go if the prison doors were to open.

“There is a serious lack of commitment for our safety.”

Mr Foreman’s statement added: “Lastly, we would like to say a massive thank you to our families and friends who have been… and are still the driving force and the backbone fighting for our release and our safe passage back home.”

Ms Foreman’s son, Joe Bennett, said his mother is “in pieces” – calling their detention a “slow-motion destruction”.

He said: “My mum is in pieces. She’s gone from always finding the positive to feeling completely lost.

“The sense that she’s been abandoned by her own Government is breaking her.”

“They are not spies, and our Government knows that. They do not believe these charges.

“They need to say so publicly. Anything less only helps sustain a false narrative and prolongs the suffering of innocent people.”

“They are being held in appalling conditions; sleeping on metal bunks without mattresses, in constant pain. Craig is in agony with an untreated dental abscess.

“They have nowhere to turn. This isn’t just detention, it’s slow-motion destruction.”

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) warns all British and British-Iranian nationals not to travel to Iran because of a “significant risk of arrest, questioning or detention”.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the FCDO said: “The welfare of British nationals detained in Iran is a priority for this government and continues to be during the current situation in the Middle East. Craig and Lindsay’s sentences are completely appalling and totally unjustifiable.

“We will continue to pursue this case relentlessly with the Iranian regime until we see Craig and Lindsay safely returned to the UK and reunited with their family.

“We will continue to provide consular assistance to the couple and their families.”