Two Instagrammers found after 4 months

Wellington announced on Wednesday that two New Zealand travel bloggers, who went missing for four months after arriving in Iran, have left the country safely after secret talks between the two governments.

Bridget Thakoray and her husband, Topher Richwaite, the son of one of the richest men in the archipelago, arrived in Iran from Turkey in early July.

Soon the newlyweds fell silent on the social networks that they used to feed pictures of their travels.

For months, nearly 300,000 of their fans, increasingly concerned about them, sent messages that went unheeded. At the same time, the New Zealand government preferred to remain silent about them.

Island state premier Jacinda Ardern announced on Wednesday that the government had “worked very hard” during this period to “ensure (the safe departure)” of the couple, who had had a “difficult time”.

The conditions of their residence in the Islamic Republic remain unclear. Iranian authorities told AFP that the couple had not been arrested or detained and that the New Zealand government was careful not to hint at any families.

Westerners are frequently arrested by the Iranian government. Many of the briefings came in exchange for concessions from governments on sensitive ongoing issues, with Tehran accused of engaging in “hostage diplomacy”.

Most countries advise their nationals not to travel to Iran.

Christopher Richwaite, in his 30s and the son of one of New Zealand’s richest bankers, traveled there with his friends before the couple began their world tour.

His wife Bridget, who is in her twenties, set up a fashion website in 2017, a year before he started traveling.

They were on a 4×4 jeep and traveled around the planet.

In a video posted in July, which was later removed from social media, Mr. Richwaite explained that they were stopped at the Iranian border, where their car was checked. He said he was instructed on how to dress and behave.

One of their fans, Chris Luce, a retired teacher living in Canada, said the couple’s GPS tracker stayed at the same location for several days.

“They don’t stay in one place, in the middle of an unknown place, for long,” Loos told AFP. “Since they share photos and videos so often, it was clear to me that something was wrong.”

Ms. Ardern did not explain the nature of the negotiations, but insisted that she was not shy about criticizing Iran’s bloody crackdown on protests that killed at least 141 people over a month ago, including children, according to a report by the Iranian Human Rights Organization (IHR). IHR). ), a non-governmental organization based in Oslo.

This disappearance echoes Iran’s detention, for several months in 2019, of two British-Australian bloggers, particularly those suspected of spying. On the day of their release, Tehran announced the return to the country of an Iranian student held in Australia for more than a year.

The latter, Reza Dehbashi, a PhD student at the University of Queensland near Brisbane, was arrested in Australia for “attempting to purchase advanced US military equipment from Dubai and transfer it to Iran,” in violation of sanctions. Americans.

The New Zealand government has maintained diplomatic relations with Iran and has had an embassy in Tehran since 1975. Iran has repeatedly accused outside powers of fueling the protests.

Tehran announced in late September the arrest of nine foreigners, including from France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the Netherlands.