Australia’s foreign affairs minister says all charges against the couple have been dropped

This article is more than 11 months old

This article is more than 11 months old

British-Australian woman Jolie King and her Australian boyfriend, Mark Firkin, have been released from detention in Iran, with the couple saying they are “happy and relieved” to be back in Australia.

On Saturday, the Australian foreign affairs minister, Marise Payne, told reporters: “It is with some enormous relief that I announce that they have been released and returned.”

Payne said the Australian government held “very sensitive” negotiations with Iran over King and Firkin’s release and helped ensure they were treated appropriately while in detention.

Iran confirms it has detained three Australian citizens Read more

“We have done that discretely, and I would note each case of an Australian detained overseas is different and requires a specific and a particular response,” she said. “For Jolie and for Mark, the ordeal they have been through is now over, they are being reunited with their loved ones.”

She said all charges against King and Firkin had been dropped.

However, Payne confirmed that British-Australian academic Kylie Moore-Gilbert was still in Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, where she has been for almost a year, having reportedly been handed a 10-year sentence.

“Very long-term negotiations” were taking place to secure the release of the Cambridge-educated academic, Payne said.

Dr Moore-Gilbert is a Cambridge-educated academic who was most recently a lecturer in Islamic Studies at Melbourne University.

Payne described her situation as “very complex”.

“She has been detained for some considerable time, and has faced the Iranian legal system and has been convicted and sentenced … we are continuing our discussions with the Iranian government and we do not accept the charges upon which she was convicted and we would seek to have her returned to Australia.”

Earlier, Iran’s semi-official news agency Fars reported that the Islamic Republic’s judiciary spokesman, Gholam Hossein Esmayeeli, confirmed all three were detained for spying.

Evin prison, the main detention centre for Iran’s political prisoners, also houses 41-year-old Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian mother of one who is midway through a five-year sentence on spying charges which began in 2016.

Payne said King and Firkin were in good health and good spirits, and had requested privacy.

In a statement issued on Saturday afternoon they said: “We are extremely happy and relieved to be safely back in Australia with those we love.

“While the past few months have been very difficult, we know it has also been tough for those back home who have been worried for us.

“We are grateful for the efforts of the Australian government in helping secure our release, and we thank our family and friends for their love and support.”

King and Firkin left their home in Perth, Western Australia, in 2017, documenting their travels on a blog called The Way Overland. They were arrested three months ago near the Iranian capital for allegedly flying a drone – to shoot pictures for the travel blog – near military installations in Jajrood in Tehran province. They were then placed in Evin prison.

Drone use with a permit is allowed in Iran, but there are strict conditions. People must not fly drones over people or large crowds, over the city of Tehran, or over sensitive areas. Flying a drone without a permit in Iran is punishable by six months in prison followed by immediate deportation.

Payne reiterated Australia’s official travel advice for Iran is currently set to “reconsider your need to travel”, with the highest warning level, “do not travel”, applying in some parts of the country.

“It goes to show the importance of appreciating the circumstances, the laws, the conditions of the countries in which Australians travel and the importance to review those whenever you make the decision to travel,” she said.