In a dramatic escalation at the United Nations today, the Security Council passed an emergency resolution demanding the immediate release of British nationals Richard and Laura Foreman, detained in Tehran since last Thursday. British diplomats, led by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, spearheaded the humanitarian charge, accusing the Iranian regime of ‘holding innocent people hostage to political ends.’ The Foremans, a Yorkshire couple in their late 50s, were seized from their rented flat in central Tehran.
They had been in the country for a medical conference where Richard, a retired nurse, was due to speak on palliative care. No charges have been formally filed. The UN vote, passed 12-3 with Russia and China abstaining, marks the first time the body has intervened directly in a detention case.
The resolution includes a 72-hour deadline for release and threatens ‘proportionate measures’ if ignored. For the Foremans’ family, waiting in their home town of Huddersfield, every hour feels like a year. Their son, Tom, told reporters: ‘Mum and Dad are not political.
They just wanted to help people.’ The Foreign Office has confirmed that consular access has been granted but remains limited. As the clock ticks on the UN deadline, the cry from the North echoes through the corridors of power: let them go.
