Engineer Robert Pether heading home to Ireland after being detained in Iraq for five years

Australian engineer Robert Pether, who was held in prison in Iraq for five years, is on his way back to his home in Ireland. The news was welcomed by his family, who said they have been “living in hell” since Pether was arrested without charge in April 2021 in connection to a business dispute.Pether, who had been living in Ireland for a number of years, had been working as a mechanical engineer on rebuilding the Iraqi Central Bank when he was arrested with a colleague from CME Consulting, the Dubai-based company they were working for.There was a contract dispute between his employer and the Central Bank of Iraq, which led to him and his Egyptian colleague being imprisoned.READ MOREPether was released from jail last year due to his deteriorating health, but was banned from leaving the country until last week, when an Iraqi court dismissed proceedings against him and lifted the travel ban, citing a lack of evidence.He was allowed to board a flight on Monday to Ireland, via Turkey, after negotiations involving officials in Ireland, Australia, Egypt and Iraq – and Pether’s international pro-bono team at Slaney Advisors, a consultancy specialising in international arbitration.Pether’s wife, Desree, who lives in Co Roscommon, said she was “hugely relieved”.“It’s been an absolute nightmare, especially these last few months,” she said. “So many obstacles and plot twists right up to the last minute.”Pether and his Egyptian colleague Khalid Radwan were detained in Baghdad in 2021 after flying in for a meeting with bank officials to resolve a dispute they were having with CME Consulting.Pether was later sentenced and fined over allegations that his firm spent money that should have gone to an architect and a subcontractor.In a report in March 2022, the UN working group on arbitrary detention found Pether had been arbitrarily detained in breach of international law.[ Irish resident released from Iraqi prison is deteriorating rapidly, wife saysOpens in new window ]The UN body also found the arrest constituted an “enforced disappearance” and may have involved forms of torture. The working group said it had received complaints that Pether was exposed to extreme cold, threats of death, humiliation and various forms of psychological abuse.“Mr Pether was detained in a [2x2 metre] cell with the lights permanently on,” the working group said in its report. “He was reportedly blindfolded, interrogated, screamed at, threatened, insulted and shown torture rooms.”Pether’s family described the arrest and ongoing detention as a living nightmare. His health dramatically deteriorated.Desree Pether had previously been critical of the efforts of Australian officials to secure Pether’s release. The Australian government said it had raised the case with Iraqi authorities more than 200 times.Following her husband’s release from jail in 2025, Desree Pether said from Ireland she was “grateful to everyone who contributed to this happening”.Advisers to Pether have expressed concern about the timing of a statement from the Australian foreign minister Penny Wong announcing his departure from Iraq, saying it was issued at a sensitive period while the engineer was still transiting through Turkey.Wong’s office issued a statement on Monday announcing that Pether had been allowed to leave Iraq after five years trapped in the country, including a four-year stint in jail that his family feared would kill him.The managing director, Peter Griffin, said he was shocked by the timing of Wong’s statement.He said it was issued while Pether was transiting through Turkey and still at risk, particularly if there was premature and negative media reporting concerning the Iraqi government’s handling of the case.“We were aware for some time that minister Wong was keen to be the first to break this fantastic news,” Griffin said. “But Robert’s safety was paramount.” Wong’s office declined to respond to the criticism. Earlier, the foreign minister said: “The Australian government welcomes the Iraqi government’s decision to allow Mr Robert Pether to leave Iraq today.”“I spoke to Mr Pether shortly before his departure from Baghdad and am pleased he is now free to move forward with his life and be reunited with his family.“Today’s outcome follows many years of persistent advocacy by the Australian government, including at the highest levels of government, and sustained consular assistance to Mr Pether and his family.” – Guardian