British Couple detained in Iran

Hear hear merlotgran!

This of course is the other thing these idiots do not think of, and that is the worry and distress their reckless behaviour causes their families.

rafichagran
as someone on Mumsnet said Middle class twatary
They don't mince their words over there, do they!

On GN posters are chastised for calling them foolish.

merlotgran

Their poor families must be beside themselves. I don’t think there’s any point in constantly criticising their foolish behaviour. What’s done is done and we must hope for a positive outcome.

I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.

Absolutely

Well said merlotgran. My feelings exactly. I could use a few more colourful adjectives to describe Iran, but I'll refrain for the moment. Sadly it's not the only brutal dictatorship in the world and it could be joined by a few others in the not too distant future as the global situation becomes ever more polarized.

Of course their families must be beside themselves with worry.
If this couple were relatives of mine or anyone on here, of course they would be desperate.
That doesn't detract from the fact that they were warned, knew the consequences and should not have gone there, causing their families all this worry and putting the lives of others in danger.

merlotgran

Their poor families must be beside themselves. I don’t think there’s any point in constantly criticising their foolish behaviour. What’s done is done and we must hope for a positive outcome.

I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.

Absolutely.

Good post Merlotgran.

Just been on the news, they gave been charged with espionage.

I do feel for the family, not for this vouple though.

Couple

I m very sad for their families it must be an unthinkably worrying time for them I can’t imagine how awful it is
Their charge is espionage , which is to be expected they were ‘interviewing’ ordinary folk and of course in a country like Iran that would be considered as spying, however innocently meant it was. perhaps when they get over all this whether it’s in days, months or years hopefully they will stay nearer home to do their internet interviews in the future !
I have no patience with people who arrogantly ignore and flout rules, regulations and sound advice from authorities and whilst I don’t agree at all with the incredibly harsh systems in some countries we have to acknowledge and adhere to them

I am afraid my views are more in accord with Mumsnet.

BlueBelle

I m very sad for their families it must be an unthinkably worrying time for them I can’t imagine how awful it is
Their charge is espionage , which is to be expected they were ‘interviewing’ ordinary folk and of course in a country like Iran that would be considered as spying, however innocently meant it was. perhaps when they get over all this whether it’s in days, months or years hopefully they will stay nearer home to do their internet interviews in the future !
I have no patience with people who arrogantly ignore and flout rules, regulations and sound advice from authorities and whilst I don’t agree at all with the incredibly harsh systems in some countries we have to acknowledge and adhere to them

The views of these ordinary Iranians were to be presented at a conference in Brisbane, so not just innocent chats with people they met on their travels.

Mrs Foreman said of their travels to Pakistan and Iran it was risky and slightly scary but said "Yes, we're aware of the risks."

They will probably be used as leverage in an exchange which is the best they can hope for.

merlotgran

Their poor families must be beside themselves. I don’t think there’s any point in constantly criticising their foolish behaviour. What’s done is done and we must hope for a positive outcome.

I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.

Well said merlotgran.

I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.

But that's their culture. We obviously don't like it in the west but it's how things are done there.

We really need to learn and understand that other countries do things differently.

And we should, and usually do, respect that

Rula

*I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.*

But that's their culture. We obviously don't like it in the west but it's how things are done there.

We really need to learn and understand that other countries do things differently.

And we should, and usually do, respect that

And why we shouldn’t go there, end of.

Silly, stupid couple.

^The views of these ordinary Iranians were to be presented at a conference in Brisbane, so not just innocent chats with people they met on their travels.
^

Sadly, it doesnt bode well.

I am in agreement with Fancythat " it does not bode well" I was watching a panelist on Jeremy Vine and she said they will now be used as pawns and I fear, but hope not, it will go on for a long time.
This is why I have no sympathy, not only does the FO advice people with British passports not to go as it is dangerous but everyone who reads a paper or watches the news knows of Nazanin Zingari Radcliffe and what happened to that lady. Knowing all this they decided to go, they are now facing the consequences of their actions, they could have got Iranians who spoke to them arrested, it will be alot of time, effort, and cost to secure there release.
I hope they are not detained too long but I have no sympathy for them as they knew what they were doing, their actions were foolish and in my opinion arrogant.

What stupid idiots.
The FO put out information to advise everyone.
Yet this couple decides to ignore.
How much damage have they done to the people they met.
How much will it cost the UK.

Rula

*I’ll save my ire for the uncompromising rulers of Iran and their medieval attitudes.*

But that's their culture. We obviously don't like it in the west but it's how things are done there.

We really need to learn and understand that other countries do things differently.

And we should, and usually do, respect that

The culture of an oppressive theocracy should be respected?
Blow me down.

What a stupid thing to do! If you ignore gov't advice you have only yourself to blame

The bit that no one would believe if it wasn't true is that the female involved in this act of rank stupidity has a doctorate in psychology but despite all her erudition it is clear that she clearly lives in cloud cuckoo land.

The couple have been documenting their whole journey prior to her giving a paper at a conference in Australia. She has been asking people in different countries they went to What it means to be human and how you can live the good life

Before entering Iran she posted that they were about to tackle one of the most challenging - and lets be honest - slightly scary sections of our journey. They went on to say that they had chosen to ignore warning sfrom friends family and the Foreign Office because they believed that no matter where you are in the world, most people are good kind humans striving for meaningful life they added Yes, we are aware of the risks but we also know the rewards of meeting incredible people, hearing their stories, and seeing the breathtaking landscapes of these regions could far outweigh the fear.

I am sorry, but this 50 year old couple should not be allowed out of the house unless on reins and accompanied by a minder. I just hope they are enjoying the rewards of meeting incredible people, hearing their stories, of those they are meeting in the Iranian penal system.

They were also strapped for cash, a Just Giving page was started late last year to help them fund their adventure.

So people actually donated moneynto fund these loupy loos!!!!!!