A CWMBRAN GP will participate in a candlelit vigil at the Senedd tonight as a peaceful protest to campaign against the imprisonment of her British-Iranian sister-in-law.

Rebecca Ratcliffe has helped to organise the Welsh service, which will take place alongside a simultaneous ceremony in London.

Earlier this month, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was jailed as a ‘matter of national security’ after she was detained on April 3 while visiting family.

Her charge is being ‘one of the ring leaders in efforts planning the overthrow of the Islamic regime through projects involving the media and social media, working under the direction of media companies and espionage networks belonging to foreign governments.’

Along with her two-year-old daughter, Gabriella, who is currently living with her relatives in the Iranian capital Tehran, Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager for the charitable organisation Reuters Thompson, has had her British passport confiscated.

Dr Ratcliffe’s brother, Richard, has not seen his wife or daughter in prison since before they left for Iran, although he has spoken to his wife on the phone and skyped his daughter.

He said: “The candlelit vigil is a time for reflection and hope. We are meeting to combine our hopes and prayers to see our loved one soon, at this special holy time.

“Throughout this dark time for our family, for all our families, I have been struck by two things: people’s kindness – of friends and family, but also the kindness of strangers reaching out to us and lifting us up with their care.

“And the power of hope – and prayers across a variety of traditions – for a new day. It is that power that will bring them home. It is that power of hope and care that brings us together,” added Mr Ratcliffe.

The vigil will start at 9pm, and candles will be lit to mark the number of days which Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been detained in Iran, which will be 86 days on Tuesday.

As the sun sets, prayers will be read which will coincide the breaking of the fast for people observing Ramadan, and the family are hoping that candles will be lit online as a show of solidarity.

An online petition was set up by her brother, which has had almost 776,000 worldwide signatories and can be found at change.org/p/david-cameron-mp-free-nazanin-ratcliffe.

The services for dual nationals held in Iranian prisons will also honour Kamal Foroughi, a 76-year-old grandfather.