Today, Sunday, the French Foreign Ministry said that the arrest of more of our citizens in Iran is a “provocation”, noting that Iran has chosen the wrong path and will be held accountable for its actions.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonnat told Le Parisien newspaper on Saturday that two more French citizens have been arrested in Iran, bringing the total number of French prisoners in Iranian jails to seven.
“We had concerns about two other citizens, and from the latest checks it appears that they are also in custody,” Colonna said.
“It is more important than ever to remind Iran of its international obligations. If his goal is blackmail, he will not succeed. This is not the right way to do business with France,” she added.
“We demand their immediate release and access to consular protection. My Iranian colleague, with whom I had a long and difficult conversation, pledged to respect this right of access. I expect this to be achieved.”
Among the seven prisoners are French-Iranian researcher Fariba Adelha, who has been in detention since June 2019 and sentenced to five years in prison for compromising national security, Benjamin Brière, who was arrested in May 2020 and sentenced to eight years and eight months in prison. prison for espionage and trade unionists Cecil Kohler and Jacques Barry, who were arrested last May.
Iran angry at Macron
This comes after the Iranian News Agency (IRNA) reported today, Sunday, that Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani condemned a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron with a number of personalities, which he called “anti-Iranian” on the sidelines of the Paris Peace Forum.
Kanaani emphasized that this “anti-Iranian behavior will remain in the memory of the Iranian people.”
Kanaani said: “It is astonishing that the President of a country that verbally recognizes freedom has lowered his level to such an extent that he meets a pariah figure who has made himself a puppet of others and in recent months has sought to spread hatred and incite acts of violence and terrorist acts within Iran and against Iranian diplomats and diplomatic headquarters abroad.”
According to media reports, Macron met with Iranian activists in Paris, including the daughter of one of the victims of recent protests.
