Lebanese held in Iran on espionage charges ends 33-day hunger strike

The lawyer of a Lebanese man held in Iran since 2015 said on Saturday that his client has ended a 33-day hunger strike.

Majed Dimashkiyeh sent AP a letter from Nizar Zakka announcing an end to his hunger strike following a request from his children.

Zakka was rushed to hospital after his health deteriorated earlier this month.

The 50-year-old, who has permanent US residency, went missing in September 2015, during his fifth trip to Iran. Two weeks later, Iranian state TV reported that he was in custody and suspected of "deep links" with US intelligence services.

It showed what it described as an incriminating photo of Zakka and three other men in army-style uniforms, two with flags and two with rifles on their shoulders. But the photo was actually from a homecoming event at Zakka's prep school, the Riverside Military Academy in Georgia, according to the school's president and his brother.

Last September, Zakka was sentenced to ten years in prison and handed a $4.2 million fine after being convicted of espionage by a security court.

Zakka's family denies the allegations.

His brother said he had been invited to attend a conference at which President Hassan Rouhani spoke of sustainable development and providing more economic opportunities for women.

"He is completely losing hope in life, and this is the most difficult period a human being might reach," Zakka said in an interview in Beirut, adding that he had urged his brother to end the hunger strike when he spoke to him by phone early on Tuesday.

The family has urged Lebanese President Michel Aoun to raise Zakka's case when he visits Iran in August. Aoun is a close ally of Hizballah, a powerful Iranian-backed Lebanese group.

"We hope that President Aoun will reach a happy ending in this matter," said Dimashkiyeh, who has sent an official letter to Aoun asking him to intervene with Iranian authorities.

Ziad Zakka said their mother passed away last July. He said she had sent a letter to Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Rouhani through the Iranian Embassy in Beirut, telling them that "my dream is to see Nizar."

Zakka, who used to live in Washington, leads the Arab ICT Organisation, or IJMA3, an industry consortium from 13 countries that advocates for information technology in the region.

AP reported in May last year that IJMA3 had received at least $730,000 in contracts and grants since 2009 from both the State Department and the US Agency for International Development, USAID.