Iran confirms Mahdieh Esfandiari is free and at its Paris embassy after France released French couple detained in Iran, in apparent prisoner exchange.
PARIS: Iranian citizen Mahdieh Esfandiari has been transferred to the Iranian embassy in Paris after her release from French custody.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed the development on Wednesday, stating “Our citizen in France, Ms. Esfandiari, is now free, she is at our embassy, and hopefully, she will return once her trial is over.”
The announcement followed Iran’s conditional release of French couple Cecile Kohler, 41, and Jacques Paris, who had been detained since May 2022.
Araghchi described the French nationals as “two foreign citizens were convicted of espionage” who received “Islamic kindness by the judiciary.”
The 40-year-old Esfandiari was arrested in February in Villeurbanne on terrorism-related charges.
She faces restrictions including regular police check-ins and a ban from social media and international travel.
Her trial on charges of online advocacy, incitement to terrorism, racial hatred and criminal conspiracy is scheduled for January 13.
Esfandiari’s lawyer Nabil Boudi confirmed “the prosecutor strongly opposed” her release, citing “the risk of flight.”
Iran had maintained Esfandiari’s detention was arbitrary while insisting the French couple were spies.
Several European governments accuse Tehran of deliberate hostage-taking to extract concessions from Western nations. – AFP
