Concern grows for British couple jailed in Iran after family loses all contact

The family of a UK couple jailed for 10 years in Iran have said they are increasingly worried after not hearing from them for over a week.

Lindsay and Craig Foreman, who were detained during a motorbike trip in January 2025 and later sentenced over spying allegations, are being held in the notorious Evin Prison.

Their phone access was cut off in early May, according to relatives, who believe it was in response to a media interview they gave.

The couple, who deny all the charges, believe their situation has been complicated by the UK government removing diplomatic staff from Iran due to the war.

Campaigners said the couple did the interview after Lindsay Foreman had a "deeply alarming call" with the UK's ambassador in which he's said to have indicated no clear channel was currently available to work on their release.

Before communication was cut off, Mr Foreman also warned family they could go on hunger strike if they were blocked from using the phone.

"We simply do not know if my mum and Craig are safe," said Lindsay Foreman's son, Joe Bennett.

"Craig told us that they might have to stop eating if their calls were taken away. I have not spoken to my mum for over a week now.

"Every day of silence makes it worse. We don't know what is happening to them and we are terrified for them."

The couple also went on hunger strike in November but ended it after getting assurances they could see each other and contact family.

Mr Bennett said France had been able to secure the release of its citizens from Iran and he's concerned the UK may have "decided this case is simply too politically complicated to resolve".

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has previously called the sentences "appalling" and said the government was continuing work to get them home.

"Britain's ambassador to Tehran, diplomats and officials in London have been working to provide consular assistance," a spokesperson told Sky News earlier this month.

"This includes the ambassador visiting them in prison and facilitating calls with their family back in the UK." They also said the foreign secretary had met the family in March.

The couple from East Sussex were on a round-the-world trip when they were detained, despite having valid visas, a licensed tour guide and approved itinerary.

UK Middle East minister Hamish Falconer told parliament recently that the couple were "innocent tourists".

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The family want Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper to seek an immediate check on their welfare and urgently liaise with Iranian authorities on restoring their phone access and visiting rights.

They are still only a few months into their decade-long sentence - imposed after a brief hearing that family say denied them the chance of a meaningful defence.

Conditions in Evin prison are said to be dire, with fellow inmates routinely executed, brutal fights and squalid conditions.

It's the same jail British-Iranian woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was held in for five years before her release in 2022.

(c) Sky News 2026: Concern grows for British couple jailed in Iran after family loses all contact