IRANIAN prison authorities have reportedly prevented jailed UK charity worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe from having a regular telephone call with her husband, Farnham man Richard Ratcliffe, after announcing she and fellow detainee Narges Mohammadi would begin a hunger strike protest against their imprisonment.

In a letter released by a human rights charity last week, the jailed duo announced they would begin a three-day hunger strike on January 14 in protest at a denial of medical care in detention – in Nazanin’s case, for lumps in her breast, neurological care over her neck pains and numbness in her arms and legs.

It is also reported that guards at Evin prison near the Iranian capital Tehran have already begun reducing their food rations ahead of the strike.

Free Nazanin, an organisation run by Nazanin’s family calling for her release, tweeted on Sunday: “Following announcement of a planned hunger strike, Iranian authorities have cancelled Nazanin’s weekly call with her husband and imposed restrictions on all other calls.”

And in an interview with the Press Association, her husband Richard, who grew up in Farnham, added Nazanin’s requests for treatment were being blocked “despite having been approved by the prison doctor”.

“I think it’s a real last resort step, and I did not think we were at last resorts just yet,” he said.

“In fairness to her, I have been campaigning for a long time, and we will continue campaigning, but I can’t sit back and tell her it’s worked because she’s still in prison.”

Nazanin recently completed her 1,000th day in detention, and three days before that she turned 40 in jail.

Last Friday, MP for South West Surrey and foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt described Nazanin’s imprisonment as “monstrous and totally unjust” on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, adding: “Nazanin isn’t the only person who is being detained, despite being totally innocent, as a pawn of diplomatic leverage.”

Kate Allen, Amnesty International UK’s director, added: “It’s utterly disgraceful that the Iranian authorities are heaping more punishment on Nazanin and Narges like this.

“Rather than subjecting Nazanin and Narges to reprisals for their hunger strike, the Iranian authorities must release these prisoners of conscience immediately and unconditionally.

“Their hunger strike is a desperate protest against repeatedly being denied the medical care they require.

“Instead of playing sinister games with Nazanin and Narges’ health, the Iranian authorities should immediately provide them with all the medical care they need pending their release.”

Nazanin was arrested at Tehran airport on April 3, 2016, before boarding a plane back to the UK after visiting family with her infant daughter Gabriella.

After being detained in solitary confinement without access to a lawyer, she was sentenced to five years in prison in September 2016 after being convicted of ‘membership of an illegal group’, which she denies.