A BRITISH man jailed alongside his wife for 10 years in Iran for alleged spying has criticised the government for abandoning them in a war zone.

Speaking from prison, Craig Foreman said he and his partner Lindsay feel “let down, alone and completely frustrated” with how their situation is being handled.

The couple, from East Sussex, were arrested in January 2025 while travelling through Iran on a round-the-world motorcycle trip.

They are being held in Tehran’s Evin Prison on espionage charges, which they deny, 14 months into a 10-year sentence.

In a statement, Mr Foreman called on the government to “step out of the shadows and help us.”

He said: “We are both currently [imprisoned] for crimes that were never committed; spying for the UK and Israel.

“We were charged based on falsified evidence that was fabricated to suit the maximum sentence.

“Our government are fully aware of this information and know we are 100 per cent innocent.

“We are proud to be British, but by now we feel let down, alone, and completely frustrated by the lack of public defence by the people in charge of the government.”

He urged Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Foreign Under-Secretary Hamish Falconer and ambassador to Iran Hugo Shorter to “Go public with the information.”

Mr Foreman said: “You have to step out of the shadows and help us. Our lives are constantly at risk.

“We are now in a prison in a war zone. We have gone from a challenging situation to a life-threatening situation.”

A family spokesperson said an explosion blew out the windows of the space where Mr Foreman is being held, and Ms Foreman described how women dived under metal bunk beds for cover.

Ms Foreman’s son, Joe Bennett, said his mother is “in pieces,” adding: “The sense that she’s been abandoned by her own government is breaking her.

“They are not spies, and our government knows that. They need to say so publicly.”

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has described the jail sentences as “completely appalling and totally unjustifiable,” saying their welfare is a “priority.”

A spokesperson said: “We will continue to pursue this case relentlessly with the Iranian regime until we see Craig and Lindsay safely returned to the UK.”