LONDON: The husband of a British-Iranian woman who has been detained in Iran for over half a decade has slammed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson for showing a 鈥渞eal lack of leadership鈥� in the fight to bring his wife home.

Richard Ratcliffe is on the 10th day of a hunger strike aimed at pressuring London to do more to bring his wife Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe home.

She has languished in Iranian detention for over five years after being accused of plotting to overthrow the regime while visiting family in Tehran in 2016. She has always vehemently denied the accusation.

Ratcliffe and his family are 鈥渁ngry鈥� at the British government鈥檚 lack of progress in freeing his wife, he told The Independent, adding that the 鈥渋dea the government has sat around for five-and-a-half years, not solving our case, is unconscionable.鈥�

But the Ratcliffe family鈥檚 relationship with Johnson has not always been so strained. Zaghari-Ratcliffe exchanged letters with him while she was jailed in Iran鈥檚 Evin prison, and she knitted Johnson鈥檚 son Wilfred a 鈥渓ittle woolly hat鈥� when he was born last year, Ratcliffe said.

鈥淎nd the prime minister wrote her a lovely card, saying 鈥榯hank you鈥� and how much he appreciated it 鈥� so the human side is there, but there鈥檚 a disconnect between that human sympathy and the policy to take her out the situation she鈥檚 in.鈥�

Ratcliffe said the government is risking 鈥渢he credibility of the UK鈥檚 ability to protect鈥� its own people.

鈥淲here鈥檚 the government鈥檚 moral compass?鈥� he asked. 鈥淚t鈥檚 almost like citizens are expendable.鈥�

He said he spoke to his wife Wednesday morning and she was feeling 鈥渁gitated and helpless.鈥�

Following Tehran鈥檚 confirmation on Monday that it would attend the ongoing COP26 Summit in Glasgow, Ratcliffe pledged to continue his hunger strike at least until 鈥渁fter Iran has attended COP26鈥� because he would 鈥渓ike to disrupt that as much as possible.鈥�