Irish wife of 'innocent hostage' in Iraq shares his first words after release
The Irish wife of an "innocent hostage" freed from prison in Iraq after four years has revealed his first words were, "my family, I'm out".
Robert Pether left his family home at Elphin in Roscommon in April 2021 to fly to Baghdad to sort out a €20 million contract row between his Dubai-based employer and the Central Bank of Iraq.
But he was arrested and jailed on fraud charges, which he denies and which the United Nations claims are false.
After over four years of his family campaigning in the Irish Mirror for his freedom amid rapid deterioration in cancer survivor Rob's health, he is now out of prison.
His wife Desree revealed he is in seriously bad health but cannot return home yet because Iraq has imposed a travel ban.
She told us: "We got the news from Robert himself via video call on his solicitor's phone. His first words were, 'There's my family, I'm out'."
She added that it is such "a huge relief" but he "is not home yet" so this is just a "step in the right direction".
She revealed that she can't go to Iraq to bring him home for "urgent medical care" because their "kids are too scared of me going out to get him in case I would get jailed too".
Desree said her husband is "unrecognisable" to her, four years after she last saw him.
She hopes that the move to get him home will start as soon as the Islamic holiday of Eid ends.
The religious period, which is often used by countries in the Middle East to release prisoners, started yesterday and ends on Tuesday, June 10.
The UAE released 963 as part of Eid and Afghanistan released 1,500, according to international figures.
Desree told the Irish Mirror: "It was a really brief call when he rang to say he was out. It was the first time that we had seen him in the flesh in four years.
"We were in shock because he has deteriorated so much. He is unrecognisable.
"He is really scrawny and skinny and looks so unwell. It was a huge shock for the kids to see him like that.
"We knew that he had been sick for the last four months, but to actually see the toll that all of this has taken on his body was shocking.
"It reinforced for us how much we have to fight to get rid of this travel ban and get him home after Eid finishes.
"He needs to get home for urgent medical treatment. We are talking to him and trying to keep up his spirits and keep him company while we try to get him home.
"It is a huge relief that we have taken a step in the right direction, but he is not here yet. I can't go to him.
"The children are just not comfortable with me flying over. They have already lost one parent and they don't trust that I would be safe.
"They would be devastated if they lost me as well. We can't be there with him now, but it is brilliant that it is happening. We are massively grateful."
She added: "Robert is not well at all. He really needs to just come home so he can get the proper medical care he needs.
"It was a shock. It was hard to be very happy to see him but also to see the state of him.
"He's completely unrecognisable. It's a shock to the system to see how far he has declined.
"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.
"It has been a living nightmare every day, 18 hours a day, seven days a week.
"We've still got another major battle ahead to get him home. Until he's actually on the plane, out of airspace, and on his way, I don't think we will breathe properly and let go of all the angst."
Rob, who is from Australia but his home is in Roscommon, applied for Irish citizenship before he was sentenced to four years in prison.
His family – who say he is an "innocent hostage" – last month warned in the Irish Mirror that he had been hit with a new cancer diagnosis.
They said his continued detention could mean a death sentence.
Rob, who previously had melanoma skin cancer, has a prostate that is "three times normal size", revealed Desree.
His family expected him to be released in January, but he was hit with fresh money-laundering charges, which Rob and his lawyers have rejected.
Efforts to have him released urgently intensified, with Tanaiste Simon Harris holding top level talks with Iraq's deputy prime minister Dr Fuad Hussein to lobby for Rob's freedom.
The family was making plans to sell their home, their car, and their furniture in a bid to raise cash to "survive".
Construction engineer Rob, 49, and wife Desree, 53, and kids Flynn 21, Oscar 19, and Nala 12 have been apart since he was arrested in April 2021.
Several high-profile figures including Taoiseach Micheal Martin, Tanaiste Mr Harris, Sinn Fein Dail TD Claire Kerrane, party leader Mary Lou McDonald, and former senator Eugene Murphy all vowed to help secure his release.
Australia's foreign affairs minister Penny Wong recently called for his release and said: "It's time for him to be returned to his family."
A spokesperson for America's special presidential envoy for hostage affairs (SPEHA) said recently: "We hope to see him reunited with his family as soon as possible."
Mr Harris said the latest development is "welcome news in what has been a long and distressing saga for Robert's wife, three children and his wider family and friends"
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