Roscommon man Robert Pether released from jail in Iraq after being detained for four years
While he has been released from prison, Mr Pether remains in Iraq as he is facing a travel ban.
The Australian citizen, who had been living in Elphin, Co Roscommon, with his family, was detained in April 2021 and was found guilty of deception in a “kangaroo court”, according to his wife Desree.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Desree Pether said she saw her husband on video for the first time in over four years last night and that he was “completely unrecognisable”, adding that it was “a shock to the system to see how far he’s declined”.
The paperwork securing her husband’s release was sorted “late last night”, she said.
“It’s the end of the work week in Iraq and now they have Eid, so they’re off for the next few days and so we don’t know the exact stipulations of the travel ban but at least he’s out of prison and he’s in a comfortable bed, which he found very difficult last night, having so many pillows.
“He actually thought about sleeping on the floor – and of course, it was very, very quiet there wasn’t up to 20 odd other people in the cell with him.”
Ms Pether said her husband is “very sick at the moment” and the focus is currently on keeping him well and ensuring the travel ban can be resolved as soon as possible so he can come home.
“I got to speak to him late last night and saw him on video for the first time in over four years and it was a shock.
“It’s hard, sort of, to be very happy to see him, to see the state of him, he’s completely unrecognisable and it’s a shock to the system to see how far he’s declined,” she said.
“He’s not well at all and he really needs to just come home so that he can get the proper medical care that he needs.”
Ms Pether said that while the conditions of the prison are not something they can “openly talk about yet”, his cellmates and those who worked in the prison were all “very good to him”.
“He’s fainted a few times in the last couple of months due to the fact he’s not eating properly because he can’t keep anything down. If he fainted, he had a bunch of people in the cell looking after him and giving him some tea with honey to try and help him,” she said.
“It was the best of a bad situation.”
Ms Pether said trying to secure her husband’s release has been “a living nightmare every day” that is still not over.
“It’s one small step in the right direction.”
Ms Pether said she hopes “there’s light at the end of the tunnel and that we can get through this next stage relatively easy, with the least amount of pressure needing to be applied”.
Their three children are “happy that they can speak to their dad more freely now”, but Ms Pether said the family still face “another major battle ahead to get him home”.
“Until he’s actually on a plane, out of airspace and on his way, I don’ t think we’ll actually breathe properly and left go of the angst.”
Yesterday evening, Tánaiste Simon Harris said this was the “first step” in Mr Pether’s return to Ireland.
“This evening, I have been informed of the release on bail of Robert Pether, whose imprisonment in Iraq has been a case of great concern,” Mr Harris said.
“This is very 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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The Irish-based 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 Mr Pether and his Egyptian colleague ending up in prison.
Mr Pether has been in an Iraqi jail since April 2021, and his family have feared for his health.
They have been lobbying the Government for help since his arrest.
“Foreign Minister [Fuad] Hussein of Iraq, whom I spoke to last month to urge Robert’s release, called me this evening with the news,” Mr Harris added.
“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.”
Ms Pether told the Irish Independent in 2022 that the only communication she was having with her husband was when he able to ring her from the prison twice a week, with the calls ranging from three to 15 minutes in length.
