Iran releases 2 French citizens after ‘three and a half years of detention,’Macron says

French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris were released by Iran on Tuesday after “three and a half years of detention,” PresidentEmmanuel Macronannounced. 

The pair, who were arrested in May 2022 whilevisiting Iran, were accused by Iranian state television of being spies who sought to stir up unrest,according to Reuters.France previously denounced their detention as unjustified and unfounded. 

“Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on their way to French territory, after three and a half years of detention in Iran.This is a relief for all of us and obviously for their families,” Macron wrote on X. 

“Thank you to the Omani authorities for their mediation efforts, to the State services, and to the citizens who mobilized tirelessly and thus contributed to their return,” he added.

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A woman walks past posters of Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, two French citizens held in Iran, during support rallies outside the National Assembly in Paris on May 7, 2025, marking their three-year detention and demanding their release.(Abdul Saboor/Reuters)

The nonprofit United Against Nuclear Irandescribed Kohleras the head of a federation of teachers unions in France, with Paris being her partner. 

France’s foreign ministry said last May that Kohler and Paris were being detained as “state hostages by the Islamic Republic of Iran.” 

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French President Emmanuel Macron holds a press conference on July 10, 2025, in London, England.(Leon Neal/Getty Images)

“They are being held in shameful conditions and have been able to receive only fourconsular visits, under very restrictive conditions,” the ministry said at the time. 

Iranian authorities freed the pair from prison in November but didn’t let them leave the country, according to The Associated Press.

Noemie Kohler, sister of Cecile Kohler, and Anne-Laure Paris, daughter of Jacques Paris, attend a press conference in Paris, France, on June 27, 2025.Both are relatives of French citizens held in Iran.(Benoit Tessier/Reuters)

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French officials said they were then being kept safe at the French Embassy in Tehran, until their departure from Iran on Tuesday. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.