Iran released Louis Arnaud, a French tourist and a banking consultant, after five years in jail at Evin prison in the capital, Tehran, on Wednesday.
Arnaud was arrested in September 2022 and was accused of participating in anti-government protests and of contributing to anti-government propaganda.
Iran Releases Arnaud After Five Years in Jail
On Wednesday, the French government called for Arnaud's immediate release as a Revolutionary Court sentenced him on charges of making anti-government propaganda attempting to harm the security of the Islamic Republic.
"We call for his immediate release, as well as that of all French citizens arbitrarily detained in Iran," the French foreign ministry said.
According to BBC News, the ministry denounced the sentence. The ministry said, "This conviction, which has nothing to support it and the absence of any access to a lawyer, is unacceptable."
Arnaud's family said he was innocent of all charges and denounced the verdict as an attack on human rights and individual freedoms. The family also explained that he stayed away from the protests during his visit to Iran in September last year.
The family said that Arnaud never acted with political intentions or carelessness. The family added that Arnaud was unjustly targeted, imprisoned, and now convicted on baseless charges, stripping him of his freedom and rights when he just wanted to visit Iran.
Western governments accused Tehran of detaining foreigners and dual nationals on counterfeit grounds to be used as leverage. However, there has been no comment from the Iranian authorities.
Furthermore, Human Rights Watch has also accused Evin prison of using threats of torture and indefinite imprisonment, extensive interrogations, and denial of medical care for detainees.
Arnaud Arrested in Iran
The family said that Arnaud was in the middle of celebrating the birthday of one of a group of backpackers he had met on his travels when the Islamic Revolutionary Guard stopped them.
Arnaud was one of at least a dozen foreign nationals who were arrested in Tehran in what activists and Western governments have described as an intentional hostage-taking strategy aimed at withdrawing concessions from the West.
Three other French citizens were also arrested: teacher Cecile Kohler and her partner Jacques Paris and a man identified only by his first name, Olivier.
In May, Iran released French prisoners Benjamin Brière and Bernard Phelan after their health had been placed in bad condition during hunger strikes. In October, French-Iranian academic Fariba Adelkhah returned to France after being held for almost five years.
Other foreign prisoners have also been released in recent months. Five Americans were released in exchange for billions of dollars in Iranian funds that had been frozen in a South Korean account.
According to Iran's Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), around 20,000 people were arrested in the country during the anti-government protests.
