Briton held in Iran urges UK PM Keir Starmer to publicly reject spying accusation

London: A British man detained in Tehran urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday to "step out of the ⁠shadows" and publicly deny the spying charges against him and ⁠his wife, who fear for their lives ‌more than three ​weeks into the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Craig Foreman and his wife Lindsay were sentenced to 10 years in prison in February after Iran accused them of spying for Britain and ​Israel. The couple have ⁠repeatedly denied the charges.

In a voice message recorded from Evin prison in Tehran and shared with Reuters, Craig Foreman said he and his wife were living in ⁠a "war zone" ‌and accused the British government of failing to defend their innocence.

He said the couple felt "let ‌down, alone and completely frustrated by the lack of public defence ⁠by the people in charge of the government".

"You know we are innocent," he said. "Go public ‌with the information you have, to clearly ‌step up, step out of the shadows and help ‌us. Our lives are constantly at risk."

Tehran ‌has been hit repeatedly by US and Israeli airstrikes. A blast near the jail blew out window panels and sent prisoners diving under ⁠beds for ⁠cover.

Craig Foreman said the couple had received "zero information" from the British government about what to do if conditions deteriorated further.

Britain's foreign ministry reiterated in a statement that the sentences were "totally unjustifiable" and said the welfare of British nationals detained in Iran was a priority.

"We will ​continue to pursue this case relentlessly with the Iranian regime ​until we see ​Craig and Lindsay safely returned to the UK and reunited with their family," ​a spokesperson said.