British couple lose Iran jail sentence appeal, family says
Lindsay and Craig Foreman, a life‑coach and carpenter who were arrested in January 2025 while passing through Iran on a round‑the‑world motorcycle trip, had their 10‑year sentence confirmed after the Revolution Court rejected their appeal. The family says the decision was made without any reason being provided, and the couple are currently on hunger strike in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison.
The pair were charged with spying – accusations the Foremans deny – and were sentenced by a court that operates on a rotating panel of clerics and judges. A member of their legal team in the UK reported that they were denied a chance to attend the appeal hearing and were not given any explanation for its rejection. According to their son, Joe Bennett, the couple are “not permitted to attend their own appeal hearing”, a claim that has echoed human‑rights concerns at home.
The couple’s situation is compounded by a limitation on communication: they have been unable to call family since a BBC interview more than a month ago, a restriction that prompted them to begin a hunger strike. Craig has been refusing food for 25 days, while Lindsay, now on her 16‑th day of starvation, has only intermittently resumed eating. Witnesses from the prison report that Craig, who is still taking sugar, milk and water, is visibly thinner and weaker.
The incident is echoing the case of Saudi-born resident Nazanin Zaghari‑Ratcliffe, who spent nearly six years imprisoned in Iran after a UK diplomatic push. Former Foreign Office minister Richard Ratcliffe commented that the failure of the Foremans’ appeal signals a broader warning from Iranian authorities to the British government, with the Revolutionary Court described “as a theatre of punishment rather than a real court.”
The UK Foreign Office’s advice still labels travel to Iran “unjustified and appalling” for British citizens, warning that possession of a British passport might be enough to trigger detention. The Office has pledged to continue working for the safe return of both Foremans and is urging the embassy to conduct a consular visit – a move that could permit the provision of basic items such as vitamins and clothing.
In the evening, Bennett said his mother and step‑father had been forced to sign documents in Farsi that they could not read, further underscoring the lack of fairness in the process. While the case has now been forwarded to the Supreme Court, the family remains uncertain about the timeline and consequences of the next legal steps.
The current story illustrates a growing trend of Britain-Iranian confrontations and has raised urgent questions about the protection of citizens abroad, the mechanics of the Iranian judiciary, and the real impact of diplomatic pressure in securing the release of jailed nationals.
