Additional reporting by KMTV’s Abby Hook
The son of a woman detained with her husband in Iran for the past six months is yet to hear from her and says his family has been “torn apart”.
Joe Bennett, from Folkestone, is calling on the UK government to do more to help bring his mum, Lindsay Foreman, and her partner, Craig, home.
The couple, both 52, had been on an “adventure of a lifetime”, attempting to motorbike from Spain to Australia – but the trip turned into a nightmare when they were arrested by the Iranian authorities.
Joe – Lindsay’s eldest son – last spoke to the pair on January 3 prior to their arrest, before learning they were being charged with spying in February.
The family have watched anxiously as Israel has launched bombing raids on Iran, including strikes on a prison they were told the couple had been moved to.
Joe admits: “That was probably the height of the fear.”
The 31-year-old spoke to KentOnline’s sister TV station KMTV this morning.
“I can’t imagine what they’re feeling right now,” he said.
“They must have some notion as to what’s going on. I don’t know how much they know or what they know. But they must understand that the countries were at war.
“It’s a tough one to think about. I try not to think about it too much, because I don’t think that helps. But obviously, it adds that urgency.
“We just want to make sure that we’re doing everything we can as a nation and as a government – united in one cause – and that is to bring them home.”
Joe accepts that some people may question why the couple attempted to travel through Iran, despite the UK government’s official advice to stay out of the country.
He said: “We understand that people are going to be thinking the same thing – like, why would you go to a country you’re advised not to? But it also begs the bigger question: why not?
“Why can’t people go to certain parts of the world? Why is that not allowed? And they did everything they should have done to go there.
“They had the visa. They were allowed into the country. They had a guide.
“They stayed on main roads. They followed every bit of advice they could. And while they were there, they did nothing but commend the country.
“They couldn’t believe how beautiful it was – how nice the people were. It’s a shame this happened, because it tarnishes what was a very beautiful story for my mum and Craig. They loved the place. They loved the people.”
Joe also held a virtual press conference on Instagram yesterday, calling for the couple, from East Sussex, to be released and urging the UK government to do more.
“I want to make it completely clear that they are not spies, they are not political players or criminals, they are simply a mum and a dad, a son and a daughter, who we miss very, very much,” he said in the video.
“For the past month, we didn’t know where they were.
“We were told on June 8 they were supposed to be moved to Evin Prison in Tehran, and we were left in the dark for four long weeks.”
Evin Prison is an infamous detention facility in the Islamic Republic, known for systematic human rights abuses and being a symbol of the state’s absolutist rule.
The site was bombed by Israel on June 23 – while the UK has pulled its embassy staff out of the city.
In an emotional plea, Joe said: “For over six months, we’ve followed the advice of the Foreign Office. We’ve been scared to say their names. That’s not right. Their names need to be known, and we need to bring Lindsay and Craig’s names into the light.
“We hoped quiet diplomacy would work, but there’s been no urgency, no clear answers, no signs of progress, so we are done waiting quietly. That silence ends today.
“This isn’t just about politics, it’s about my mum who never missed a birthday call, who’s now missed several. It’s about Craig, who’d give you the shirt off his back, now being used as leverage by a foreign state.
“It’s about a British family torn apart.”
The Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to Iran, saying British and British-Iranian dual nationals are at “significant risk” of arrest, questioning or detention.
UK government support is also “extremely limited in Iran”.
“We are heartbroken, drained, and we’re trying to hold on,” Joe added.
The Foreign Office has been contacted for comment.
