UK nationals should not be used as political leverage by Iran, says minister

James Cleverly says arbitrary' detention of dual nationals such as Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe should not be linked to other disputes

British dual nationals should not be used as political leverage" by Iran, according to a UK minister, who pushed back on claims in Tehran that a multimillion pound debt is to be settled for Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe's release.

The renewed focus on the plight of the 42-year-old British-Iranian woman - who has been held in Iran since 2016 - continued amid some signs that Iran could be on the verge of releasing two US-Iranian nationals.