Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris have returned to France after more than three years of detention in Iran. The two French nationals arrived in Paris on Wednesday, marking the end of an ordeal that began with their detention in 2022. They were held on espionage charges, which France has stated were baseless.
Their release is part of a prisoner swap, with Iran receiving the lifting of house arrest for an Iranian woman convicted in France for online incitement to terrorism. The exchange comes as France has sought to distance itself from the United States regarding the conflict in Iran.
President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the pair home, calling their return “the end of a terrible ordeal.” Kohler and Paris spent over three and a half years in a Tehran prison before their release and subsequent journey home.