Latest news with #Desree
Irish Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
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"
Sunday World
5 days ago
- Politics
- Sunday World
Irish wife of man jailed in Iraq for four years was ‘numb with shock' after release
'I got a little advance warning of his release and I was numb with shock as it was so unexpected.' The Irish wife of Robert Pether who was released from an Iraqi jail last night has revealed how she was numb with shock when told the news The couple live in Elphin county Roscommon and Robert was locked up four years ago after being caught up in a dispute between his employers and the Iraqi government but is now out on bail. His wife Desree told the Sunday World, 'I got a little advance warning of his release and I was numb with shock as it was so unexpected.' Robert Pether News in 90 Seconds - 6th June 2025 'He called me from his lawyers phone late last night and only then did I really believe it. It was a video call and he looked so ill he was barely recognizable. 'I hadn't seen him in weeks because he was too weak to take calls and we had been correspnding solely by email' As part of his bail conditions Robert has to remain in Iraq and Desree's efforts to address that have been delayed. 'The Muslim festival of Eid has just begun and nothing gets done for a week so we just have to wait, but having waited four years to get this far we'll manage that 'He needs to get home for medical help so we'll battle on'. Tanáiste Simon Harris pleaded Roberts case in a meeting with Iraqi officials last month and Desree said: 'To be fair the government here have gone above and beyond the call of duty to help'
Irish Examiner
5 days ago
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Robert Pether's family to hear of restrictions put on engineer next week
The family of Irish-based engineer Robert Pether has to wait until next Wednesday before being able to find out exactly what restrictions have been placed on him following his release from an Iraqi jail. The 50-year-old was released on bail on Thursday and is currently in accommodation in Iraq, organised by the Irish, Australian, and Egyptian embassies for himself and his Egyptian work colleague, Khalid Radwan. The men have been in prison in Iraq since April 7, 2021, after being arrested on fraud charges following a contractual dispute involving his employer over a new building for the Central Bank of Iraq. The Australian and his wife Desree had been living with their children in Elphin, Roscommon, prior to his arrest. They moved to Ireland in 2019. He and his colleague were arrested after being called to a meeting in Baghdad to discuss the project they had been working on. Desree told the Irish Examiner that legal fees have cost the family more than €100,000 since Robert's imprisonment, and she had to sell the family car 'so that we could eat'. She said her husband has missed many family milestones including their children's birthdays, their oldest son's graduation, and his own 50th birthday in April. Their 12-year-old daughter asked Santa every year to bring her father home She said the couple were 20 years married last October — a milestone they had planned to mark with a vow renewal ceremony. Desree says they are waiting to get information on what restrictions apply to his release. However, they cannot get this information until the Eid Al-Adha festival ends on Wednesday. Gut issue She said he needs to be brought back to Ireland as a matter of urgency because he is very ill with a gut issue. He has had no medical assessment since his release. While he was on a high after his release, he found it difficult to sleep on Thursday night, finding his new accommodation as 'too quiet' after his prison experience. Desree said the Irish Government has gone 'above and beyond' in Robert's case, especially as he is not an Irish citizen. On Friday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the fact that he is an Australian citizen is a complicating factor. However, he said: 'Both ourselves and the Australian government have been working together in terms of endeavouring to get him out.' He said the Irish Government has been making 'continuing efforts for quite a long number of years now' in Robert's case. Mr Martin said the current Iraqi foreign minister has been very helpful and he said he himself, as well as Tánaiste Simon Harris, have been in touch with him. Mr Martin added: "It is very distressing for his family and his wife and kids, and I don't want to say things that may in any way hinder his eventual arrival back to Ireland, but I believe this is a good first step. "We have to work very hard with countries such as Iraq and others in terms of the treatment of Irish citizens.' Read More Irish-based Australian released after four years in Iraqi jail
Roya News
5 days ago
- Business
- Roya News
Australian engineer freed from Iraqi prison after four years
After spending more than four years in an Iraqi prison, Australian engineer Robert Pether has been granted a conditional release — a development welcomed by his family and supporters. Pether, 50, was arrested in 2021 alongside a colleague over a contract dispute involving their employer, CME Consulting, and the Central Bank of Iraq. The pair were later convicted of fraud and sentenced to five years in prison and a USD 12 million fine. However, the UN has described Pether's detention as arbitrary and in violation of international law, while a 2022 ruling by the International Chamber of Commerce found the Iraqi central bank to be at fault in the business dispute. Pether's wife, Desree, who lives in Ireland with the couple's family, described the news as a moment of mixed emotions. 'It's the first time in over four years that we've taken one step in the right direction,' she told the BBC. 'There's a tiny glimmer of hope, but there's another mountain still to go over. He needs to be home and in hospital.' According to Desree, her husband is in poor health after years of incarceration. He is unable to keep food down and has reportedly not eaten properly in months. She also raised concerns that he may be suffering a relapse of skin cancer. 'He's unrecognisable. If he got on a plane now and they were checking his passport, they would not know it was the same person,' she said. Although freed from prison, Pether is still facing legal proceedings in Iraq and remains under a travel ban. The family has now launched a crowdfunding campaign in the hopes of securing private hospital treatment for him in Baghdad. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the release as a "positive development" following years of advocacy. "I know the personal toll Mr Pether's detention has taken on him and his family and hope this news brings a measure of relief after years of distress," she said, adding that Australia remains concerned about his health and the unresolved legal matters. Ireland's Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris also welcomed the news, saying that Iraq's Foreign Minister had personally confirmed Pether's release in a phone call. 'I welcomed this as a first step to his being allowed to return to his family in Roscommon,' Harris said. Pether had been living in County Roscommon prior to his arrest and had spent nearly a decade working in the Middle East. He was leading a major reconstruction project for the Central Bank's Baghdad headquarters when he and his Egyptian colleague Khalid Radwan were detained.
BreakingNews.ie
6 days ago
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Irish-based Australian man released from Iraqi jail after four years
Robert Pether has been released on bail in Iraq. The Australian national remains there for the moment as he is under a travel ban and cannot return home, it is understood. Advertisement He lived with his wife and three children in Co Roscommon before travelling to Iraq, where he was arrested and jailed on fraud charges in 2021. The Tánaiste was informed of his release during a call with Foreign Minister Hussein of Iraq on Thursday evening. "I am very pleased to have been informed of the release of Robert Pether, whose imprisonment in Iraq has been a cause of huge, huge concern. 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," Simon Harris said on Newstalk. Mr Harris welcomed it as a first step to his being allowed to return to his wife and three children in Roscommon. Advertisement "I spoke with Robert's wife, Desree, about this positive development, and I really want to thank our diplomatic officials, people in our embassy network in the region, for their tireless work. I know significant concerns remain about Robert's health, about the outstanding charges, and I'm going to keep working on this until we get a fully positive resolution and Robert back home with his family," the Tánaiste said. The Irish Times reported that Mr Pether worked as an engineer and was helping to design the central bank in Baghdad, and was set to work on three hospitals. However, there was a contract dispute between his employer and the Central Bank of Iraq, which led to him and his Egyptian work colleague Khalid Radwan being imprisoned. The pair were sentenced to five years and fined $12 million by an Iraqi court.
