Inside family's ‘living nightmare' as Roscommon dad ‘completely unrecognisable' after 4 years' detention in Iraqi jail
THE distraught wife of an Irish-based man released on bail after being held in jail in Iraq for more than four years said her husband is 'completely unrecognisable' following his detention.
Robert Pether was
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Robert has been trapped in an Iraqi jail for four years
Credit: Facebook
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Robert is a dad-of-three who lived in Roscommon
Credit: Facebook
The
An
Speaking on
She told the programme: 'It was a shock. It was hard to be very happy to see him but also to see the state of him.
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'He's completely unrecognisable. It's a shock to the system to see how far he has declined.
'I feel like a bus has hit me. It all happened so late last night.'
Ms Pether added that despite the grim jail situation, her husband's cellmates were "very good to him".
She explained that he fainted now and again from not eating enough, at which time those locked up with him would give him tea and honey.
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Ms Pether called it "the best of a bad situation" and said she now hopes there is "light at the end of the tunnel".
She added that her husband is still facing a travel ban in Iraq.
The
'We don't know the exact stipulations on the travel ban but at least he's out of the prison, and in a comfortable bed.'
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Ms Pether said trying to get her husband home has been 'beyond frustrating'.
'It has been a living nightmare every day. 18 hours a day, seven days a week,' she said, adding that this development was a small step in the right direction.
HUGE CONCERN
A mechanical engineer, Mr Pether had worked in the
Towards the end of the project, a dispute arose between the
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It landed Mr Pether and his
In 2023, the International Chamber of Commerce's Court of Arbitration ruled that Iraq's central bank was at fault in the dispute with CME, and ordered it to pay $13m to the company.
He told
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'This is welcome news, it's been a very long-running, and extraordinary distressing, time for Robert's wife, for his three children, for his wider circle of family and friends in Roscommon.'
Mr Harris welcomed it as a first step to his being allowed to return to his wife and three
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Robert's wife said he looks 'unrecognisable' after his detainment
Credit: Facebook
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Sunday World
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