Anonymous donor helps pay off loan to allow Kincardine dad Brian Glendinning to be freed from Iraqi jail

Dad-of-three Brian Glendinning, 43, spent two months in a Baghdad jail after he was arrested at Basrah airport when he arrived to start a new job.

Brian, from Kincardine, was detained on an Interpol Red Notice from Qatar over a debt owed to Qatar National Bank with fears he would be extradited. He took a £20,000 loan while working in Doha in 2016, but was not able to keep up full repayments when he lost his job on sick leave at home in Scotland.

His brother John Glendinning, 39, said an anonymous donor stepped in and paid the majority of the debt, helping secure his brother's release. John, who has tirelessly campaigned for Brian's release, said the family is hopeful his exit visa can be sorted by the end of this week.

Wife Kimberly, 39, brothers John and Lee, 47, mum Meta, 66, and dad John, 64, were desperately trying to raise £40,000 to bring Brian home.

John said: "When I saw the message light up my phone that Brian was being released I was shocked. The emotions were through the roof. I cried like a baby.

"It was pure joy and massive relief. I got to call his wife and tell her the news. I heard his eldest daughter Heidi in the background. That noise will live with me forever."

John, also from Kincardine, said no one should have to experience what his brother went through - and is worried the toll it will take on him.

He said: "I called my parents to tell them the good news. My dad was emotional, my mum couldn't speak. Then later on Sunday I got to speak with Brian from his hotel room. He thanked me and said he heard that I hadn't stopped. But it's what family does.

"When I heard about what he'd been through I couldn't believe it. Some things nobody should ever have to see or experience. But that will be for him to tell, when he's ready. He was shattered and ready for falling asleep but it was just so good to be talking to him and to see his face.

"Right up until about half an hour before his release, he was convinced he was going to be shipped to Qatar and into even worse conditions. He was in a crowded cell with terrorists and rats crawling over the bottled water."

John believes it will take a long time for his brother to recover from his ordeal, adding: "He was nine weeks in that place, in horrendous conditions. We live nearby and will definitely keep a close eye on him. Everyone has a breaking point.

"For a while I know he had given up. I'm worried about this mental health, he's been through hell. But we are all going to be there for him."