France lodges a complaint with the International Court of Justice, says Barrot.

Paris is tightening its stance on Iran. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, **Jean-Noël Barrot**, announced on May 16 that France has filed a complaint before the **International Court of Justice (ICJ)** concerning the detention of two French nationals by Tehran. These individuals have been held for over three years under **”unworthy conditions,”** according to Barrot, and have been denied their right to consular visits.

The detainees, **Cécile Kohler**, a 40-year-old professor from eastern France, and her septuagenarian companion, **Jacques Paris**, were arrested on May 7, 2022, on their last day of a tourist trip in Iran. The Iranian government has accused them of **”spying.”** Paris considers them to be **”state hostages,”** with Kohler and Paris being the last two French citizens imprisoned in Iran, a country that currently holds around twenty Westerners.

According to Mr. Barrot, the two have been held hostage for more than three years and are enduring conditions akin to **torture**. They are deprived of consular visits from French embassy representatives, which are crucial for their well-being. Barrot stated, **”This is the reason why I am filing a complaint before the International Justice Court against Iran, for violation of this protection, for its obligation to provide the right to consular protection.”**

Four Consular Visits in Three Years

Mr. Barrot previously stated that Paris was preparing to approach the ICJ due to a lack of progress in negotiations. The announcement was hailed as a **”major turning point”** by Cécile Kohler’s sister.

The two French prisoners are currently held in **section 209** of the notorious **Evin Prison** in Tehran, designated for political prisoners. They have been subjected to **”forced confessions,”** which were broadcast on Iranian state television shortly after their arrest, enduring extremely harsh incarceration conditions.

The lights in their cell are kept on twenty-four hours a day, giving them only thirty minutes of outdoor access two or three times a week. Their communication with relatives is limited to brief monitored calls, with the last one occurring on April 14. Over the span of three years, the detainees have only received four consular visits, and there has been minimal information pertaining to legal proceedings.

Though the French government has pledged to do everything for their release, it has proven fruitless up to this point. Between 2023 and 2025, at least five French citizens were released after prolonged detentions. However, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris now hold the disheartening record of three uninterrupted years of incarceration, which includes three months in complete isolation.

European diplomatic offices have accused Tehran of engaging in **”hostage diplomacy”** to influence sensitive negotiations regarding Iran’s nuclear program, which have been stagnant for years, in hopes of achieving the lifting of sanctions.