Contact with British couple held in Iran cut off, family says

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The family of a British couple imprisoned in Iran have claimed that contact has been cut off for more than a week, leaving them “gravely concerned” for their wellbeing.

Lindsay and Craig Foreman, from East Sussex, were detained by Iranian authorities on suspicion of espionage in January 2025 while travelling the world, which they deny.

Their family have claimed that the couple’s phone access was cut off in early May, allegedly over a media interview they gave that month.

Lindsay’s son, Joe Bennett, from Folkestone, Kent, said: “We simply do not know if my mum and Craig are safe.”

Bennett added: “Craig told us they might have to stop eating if their calls were taken away.”

He added that he had not spoken to his mother for more than a week and that every day of silence “makes it worse”.

“We don’t know what is happening to them and we are terrified for them,” he added.

The couple were on a round-the-world motorcycle trip when they were arrested on suspicion of espionage in January 2025 – charges they deny.

The family said that the couple felt “abandoned” with no other way to make their voices heard.

They said that they were informed that the pair could be placed in solitary confinement and barred from seeing each other, adding that prior to having their communication cut off, Craig Foreman had warned his family that if phone calls were prevented, he and his wife would begin a hunger strike.

The family said that they were unsure if that action had begun.

In November 2025, the couple embarked on a hunger strike to draw attention to their plight.

The family said that ended when they received written assurances that they would be allowed to see each other and contact their family.

Those assurances “have now been broken”, the family added.

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