Latest news with #IraqPrison
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Bombshell update four years after Aussie father-of-three and engineer was thrown in Iraqi jail
A Sydney father-of-three and engineer detained in an Iraqi prison for nearly four years has been released on bail in a major breakthrough. Robert Pether has been locked up in a heavily-guarded facility on the outskirts of Baghdad for the better part of half a decade after being arrested while helping the war-ravaged country rebuild on April 7, 2021. Pether had travelled to Baghdad to discuss a multimillion-dollar blowout in the cost of building the new headquarters for the government-owned Central Bank of Iraq. He was charged with deception and was sentenced to five years behind bars and a $16million fine. Pether has always maintained his innocence. The mechanical engineer claimed he was unlawfully held captive as part of a sinister plot to extort millions of dollars from his boss's construction company. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has welcomed his release. 'His case has been raised with Iraqi authorities over 200 times, including at the highest level by the Prime Minister and myself,' Senator Wong said. 'I want to thank Australian officials for their tireless work on Mr Pether's case, including Australia's special envoy who travelled to Iraq in recent weeks to negotiate for this outcome.' The update comes after Mr Pether begged for help in a letter to Daily Mail Australia. Mr Pether said he was terrified he would die in prison and never see his wife, Desree, or children, Flynn, 20, Oscar, 18, and Nala, 11, again.
SBS Australia
4 days ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
Australian Robert Pether released from Iraqi jail
Australian Robert Pether released from Iraq prison Indonesia and Australia announce joint military drills NRL players agents under fire for accreditation breaches Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . An Australian man has been freed from prison in Iraq after more than four years behind bars. An anonymous source has told SBS News the man - identified as Robert Pether - has been released on bail. The engineer had been jailed in 2021 on fraud charges in a case that the United Nations later described as an arbitrary detention. His family said the charges were manufactured following a contract dispute. Mr Pether had originally gone to Iraq to work on the construction of the country's new central bank headquarters. Indonesia and Australia are to hold joint military exercises on a strategic eastern island in the archipelago as the two neighbours seek to strengthen defence cooperation. Morotai is an allied remnant from World War II that was an important location due to the United States' operations in the Philippines and Australia's in Borneo. Defence Minister Richard Marles and Indonesian counterpart Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin have announced the joint air force and naval drills following talks in Jakarta, where they met to discuss security issues. Mr Marles says there will also be training exercises in Australia under the Defence Cooperation Agreement they have signed. "We are encouraging the TNI (Indonesian military) on that basis to unilaterally take advantage of Australia's training facilities. The first iteration of that will occur with the TNI conducting training at the Mount Bundey Training Facility in the Northern Territory. That will occur in October of this year.' An Australian has been arrested in Bali on drugs charges. Head of Narcotics Eradication at the Bali Provincial Narcotics Agency, Sinar Subawa, says the Australian man has been taken into custody after suspicious items were found in the luggage of an Indian man at Ngurah Rai International Airport, who has also been arrested. "Furthermore, narcotics officers conducted further investigation and arrested a man - Australian - named PR. During a search of the house occupied by PR, officers found evidence in the form of hashish belonging to suspect PR, which was purchased through the Telegram application." Authorities say the Australian man has been visiting Bali since 1988. They allege the hashish was shipped from Los Angeles and Philippines before arriving in Bali where officers seized 191 grams of the substance, along with some candies consisting of tetrahydrocannabinol and marijuana. The operator of a jumping castle at the centre of a tragedy that killed six children in Tasmania has been cleared of workplace safety breaches. The Devonport Magistrates Court has ruled the Taz-Zorb company was not guilty of failing to comply with a workplace health and safety duty at Hillcrest Primary School in 2021, when a gust of wind carried children in the castle into the air. The Magistrate has ruled the charge was not proven. It had previously been alleged pegs not compliant with national standards had been used at only four of the castle's eight anchor points, despite the manufacturer's instructions recommending eight. A US group distributing aid in Gaza has reopened two sites after a deadly shooting earlier this week that killed an estimated 27 people. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation's interim director, John Acree, says work is underway to open more sites - including in North Gaza - and to ensure safe and efficient delivery of lifesaving assistance. United Nations spokesperson, Stephane Dujurric, says the UN has continued to send supplies to Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing, despite what he has described as the constant blocking of humanitarian missions by Israeli authorities. He says the amount of aid arriving in Gaza is still not enough to properly feed the population. "Today we sent just over 20 truckloads of supplies which were mostly food assistance, as well as some health supplies to the Israeli side of the crossing, and that number reflects a limit imposed by the Israeli authorities... This week, partners working on food security tell us that 14 of them delivered just over a quarter of a million meals daily. This is much less than the million meals that were being distributed daily at the end of April." To sport, two NRL player agents been banned and fined a collective $35,000 after breaching the terms of their accreditation. Mario Tartak, who represents such players as Josh Addo-Carr, Damien Cook and Haumole Olakau'atu, is alleged to have communicated with an underage player without a parent or guardian present. The NRL also claims he "entered into a commercial arrangement with two NRL clubs", which is a breach of the league's accredited agent scheme rules. A second agent, Matthew Desira, has been found to have failed disclose police charges and court proceedings brought against him.
News.com.au
4 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Australian engineer freed from Iraqi jail after four years
An Australian engineer has been freed after spending four years in an Iraqi prison. Robert Pether was designing Iraq's central bank in Baghdad when a contract dispute broke out between his employer the country's government. The quarrel resulted in Mr Pether and an Egyptian colleague being sentenced to five years behind bars and fined millions on fraud charges — charges both men deny. Mr Pether has been released on bail, meaning his chances of leaving Iraq with pending proceedings are low. Foreign Minister Penny Wong welcomed his release on Friday, calling it a 'positive development'. '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,' Senator Wong said in a statement. 'While Mr Pether remains subject to legal proceedings in Iraq, this is a positive development and follows persistent Australian Government advocacy over many years.' She said his case was 'raised with Iraqi authorities over 200 times, including at the highest level by the Prime Minister and myself'. 'I want to thank Australian officials for their tireless work on Mr Pether's case, including Australia's special envoy who travelled to Iraq in recent weeks to negotiate for this outcome,' Senator Wong said. 'We will continue to support Mr Pether and his family and to advocate for Mr Pether's interests and wellbeing.'
ABC News
4 days ago
- Health
- ABC News
Australian Robert Pether released from Iraqi prison after more than four years
Australian engineer Robert Pether has been released on bail after more than four years in an Iraqi prison. Mr Pether was arrested in April 2021 alongside his Egyptian colleague and charged with deception, but he has always maintained his innocence. He was sentenced to five years' jail and a $16 million fine. His family has argued he was a pawn in a broader dispute over the delays and budget blowouts related to the construction of a new central bank headquarters in Baghdad. Foreign Minister Penny Wong welcomed his release and said Australia had consistently raised the case with Iraqi authorities. "His case has been raised with Iraqi authorities over 200 times, including at the highest level by the Prime Minister and myself," Senator Wong said. "I want to thank Australian officials for their tireless work on Mr Pether's case, including Australia's special envoy who travelled to Iraq in recent weeks to negotiate for this outcome." Mr Pether's health has deteriorated over his time behind bars and his wife Desree has consistently raised concerns for his welfare and limited access to doctors. The United Nations said there was evidence to suggest he had been exposed to torture techniques while imprisoned. Senator Wong said the government would continue to advocate for Mr Pether. "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. Robert Pether and his family had been living in Roscommon, Ireland before his arrest and Ireland's Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) Simon Harris spoke to him on his release on Thursday night local time. Mr Harris said his government would continue to work to secure Mr Pether's return to Ireland. "We remain concerned about Robert's health and outstanding charges, but I am hopeful now of a positive resolution in this case," he said.
Irish Times
4 days ago
- Health
- Irish Times
Robert Pether released on bail after four years in Iraqi jail
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris has been informed that an Australian citizen who has been living in Ireland has been released on bail after spending four years in an Iraqi prison. Robert Pether and his wife Desree have been living in Elphin, Co Roscommon for a number of years. The engineer 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. READ MORE The pair were sentenced to five years and fined $12 million by an Iraqi court. Mr Pether was detained in April 2021 and was found guilty of deception in a 'kangaroo court', according to his wife. Mr Pether has been in an Iraqi jail since then and his family have feared for his health. They have been lobbying the Government for help since his arrest. In a statement the Tánaiste said that he has been 'informed' of Mr Pether's release and whose 'imprisonment in Iraq has been a case of great concern'. The Tánaiste said he had spoken with Iraq's foreign minister Fuad Hussein last month to urge him to release the Australian. 'I was informed that Robert has been released on bail and for the moment he remains in Iraq, but I welcomed this as a first step to his being allowed to return to his family in Roscommon,' Mr Harris said. 'We remain concerned about Robert's health and outstanding charges, but I am hopeful now of a positive resolution in this case.' He also confirmed that he had spoken with Ms Pether about the 'positive development' in her husband's case and thanked the ongoing work of Irish officials living in the region on the issue.
