Nahid Taghavi, a German-Iranian citizen who spent more than 1,500 days imprisoned in Iran, has flown safely back to Germany, according to the human rights group Amnesty International.
Taghavi, an architect who was imprisoned in October 2020, arrived in Germany on Sunday, the group said. Iran’s judiciary had reportedly sentenced her to 10 years in prison for “leading an illegal group.”
“After more than 4 years as a political prisoner in the Islamic Republic of Iran my mother #NahidTaghavi was freed and is back in Germany,” her daughter, Mariam Claren, posted on X on Monday. “Thanks to everyone who campaigned to #freenahid. I kindly ask the media to respect our privacy.”
Human rights activists have accused Iran of holding foreigners hostage for leverage in negotiations, including in order to free Iranian officials convicted abroad. Tehran denies this.
According to her family, Taghavi was granted parole in September and released from the notorious Evin prison. As a condition of her release, she had to wear an electronic anklet, as she had done on a previous furlough, and was not allowed to move more than one kilometre away from her home in the capital Tehran.
