TEHRAN, Iran — The British envoy to Iran, Hugo Shorter, recently visited two British citizens, a male and a female, who are currently detained in the country on security-related allegations. This meeting took place in Kerman, a city in southern Iran, and was reported by the official IRNA news agency. Local officials from the justice department and the governor’s office were also present during the encounter.

The identities of the detained individuals were not disclosed in the report, nor were specific details regarding how long they have been detained or the exact circumstances leading to their arrest. The report described them as “suspects,” implying that they have not yet been sentenced and were likely taken into custody in recent weeks.

Images released by IRNA depicted the two sitting across from Ambassador Shorter at a table during their meeting. A spokesperson for the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) confirmed that consular support is being provided to the detained British nationals and that they are maintaining communication with local authorities regarding the situation.

The spokesperson further emphasized that the FCDO has consistently advised against travel to Iran for British and British-Iranian citizens due to the potential risk of detention within the country. Iran has a track record of arresting Western nationals on security-related charges, often accused of utilizing these individuals as leverage in negotiations with Western powers, a claim that the Iranian government denies.

In a related context, it is noteworthy that in 2022, Iran released Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian charity worker, after more than five years in detention. She had been sentenced to five years in prison on charges of attempting to destabilize the Iranian government—a charge she and her advocates have consistently contested, along with various human rights organizations.