Irish citizen Yasser Eljuboori, who was detained in Iraq for a number of days last week, has arrived back in Ireland and has been reunited with his wife and three children.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said Mr Eljuboori's wife, Laura Wickham, sent him a photo of her husband arriving back today.
Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne, Mr Martin said it was a joyous occasion for the family.
He said there had been some "hiccups" in securing Mr Eljuboori's passage, but he got his passport back yesterday morning.
The anti-corruption advocate, who had travelled to Iraq on his Irish passport to visit relatives there, was arrested by authorities at Baghdad Airport on Monday 26 February, as he was due to get on a flight home.
His family in Iraq were told he was being held in relation to defamation charges against Iraqi political leaders, including the Prime Minister.
He was remanded in custody until last Thursday, before being released on bail. However, authorities had retained his passport.
He had been told there would be "two to three days of paperwork" to complete, but on Sunday his legal team was told that two additional charges had been filed against him.
On Monday, it emerged that both of the new complainants against him had indicated to his legal team that they no longer wished to proceed with those charges.
Mr Eljuboori received his passport and belongings back yesterday, and began his journey home.
Irish citizen Yasser Eljuboori has returned to Ireland. The anti-corruption advocate, who was detained for a time in Iraq, arrived at Dublin Airport this morning and has reunited with his wife Laura and three children @RTENews pic.twitter.com/irSi5jkcDf
— Fergal O'Brien (@FergalOBrien_) March 6, 2024
In a statement, his wife said: "The past ten days have been a living nightmare for me, but most importantly for Yasser."
She expressed her thanks to everyone who has supported the family, including Mr Martin, the Department of Foreign Affairs "particularly the assistance of the Consular Directorate and the staff in the Embassy of Ireland in Jordan; and staff at the European Union Delegation to Iraq".
She also thanked her lawyer, Caoilfhionn Gallagher, "who answered the phone to a desperate despairing wife at 1am on Tuesday morning and picked me up with open arms".
Ms Wickham said that having her husband back means "the kids are getting their dad back and our house will have its life and soul again".
'Complicated and tricky fight'
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One, Ms Gallagher said it has been a "complicated and tricky fight" to get get Mr Eljuboori home.
"What's happened since Sunday [a] very busy 48 hours working very closely with the DFA and the Tánaiste and I'm very pleased to say that that has resulted in a positive outcome and Yasser returning safely home.
"It has been a lot of work but it has been absolutely worth it and when you see the images this morning of Laura, Yasser and their kids in circumstances where they thought they might never see each other again, it just shows what was at stake here and why it was so important that everyone pull together in the way that they did."
Ms Gallagher said a complaint and an urgent appeal has been filed with the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, Inhuman and Degrading treatment and that Mr Eljuboori was blindfolded and mistreated while in custody, which is something that they will need to take a look at in due course.
She said his family and lawyers in Baghdad have been "hugely supportive" in difficult circumstances.
