German-Iranian citizen Nahid Taghavi freed

Berlin/Tehran (dpa) - Nahid Taghavi (photo) has been freed after more than four years in custody in Iran. Taghavi, a German-Iranian citizen from Cologne, landed in Germany on Sunday, according to the human rights organisation Amnesty International. According to the Amnesty International statement, Taghavi’s daughter Mariam Claren said, “My mother is home at last. Words are not enough to describe our joy.”At the same time, she said she mourned the four years “which were stolen from us and the horrors she had to endure in Evin Prison.” Claren thanked all those who had campaigned for her mother’s release.  

In a social media post, Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote that it was a “moment of great joy that Nahid Taghavi could once again hold her family in her arms.” 

Taghavi, an architect, was imprisoned in October 2020. According to reports, she was sentenced to over ten years imprisonment for charges including “leading an illegal group”. Amnesty International described the “unfair trial” and criticised the charges as fabricated. Human rights activists have repeatedly accused the Islamic Republic of Iran of taking foreigners hostage as a bargaining chip to obtain the release of Iranian functionaries convicted abroad. Tehran contests these allegations.