Briton jailed in Iran set for hunger strike

A British-Iranian woman detained in Tehran is slated to begin a three-day hunger strike on Monday in protest against being denied specialist medical care, according to her family.

Speaking to The Observer daily on Sunday, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's husband Richard said: "We know a hunger strike has significant physical consequences the longer it goes on for, and Nazanin is feeling a strong sense of trepidation.

"But there aren't many ways she can say, 'enough is enough, take me seriously'."

Nazanin, a charity worker, will consider extending the hunger strike if her demands to see a doctor are not met, Richard Ratcliffe said.

He said his wife was having medical treatment blocked for checking lumps in her breasts, neurological care over her neck pains and numbness in her arms and legs, as well as for seeing an outside psychiatrist, the BBC reported.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe of Hampstead in north-west London, spent her 40th birthday on Boxing Day in prison, where she has been detained for more than 1,000 days.

Her four-year-old daughter, Gabriella, has been staying with family in Iran since she was detained.

Richard Ratcliffe has mounted a high-profile campaign for his wife's release, with Prime Minister Theresa May, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt and London Mayor Sadiq Khan all calling for her to be freed.

Nazanin was arrested at Tehran airport in April 2016 after visiting her family on holiday.

Shas always maintained the visit was to introduce her daughter to her relatives.

--IANS

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