A year ago, on May 7, 2022, Cécile Kohler, a 38-year-old French teacher, was arrested with her companion during their vacation in Iran. Suspected of spying by the authorities, they have since been imprisoned. Cécile’s family has heard very little from her and is desperately awaiting her release.
” It’s been a year now that we are going through a nightmare, in fact, our lives have really changed. You feel out of step with the rest of the world. It’s as if our life was on hold. “, testifies on RFI Noémie Kohler, the sister of Cécile. ” In fact, we are very worried, we miss her horribly. My parents are really exhausted, we just want her to come back and in a year, we realize that the situation has changed very little, so we are a little desperate. »
Her family has little contact with her, explains Noémie, who also deplores the lack of information on her sister’s detention: “ In one year, she had three calls with my parents. The last dates from April 17, so they were able to talk to him for about ten minutes. After that, the three calls were under close surveillance so my sister is very constrained in her answers. We felt that as soon as we asked her a question about her conditions of detention or her file, she was evasive. She cut it short so it essentially consisted of exchanges of words, of love, of words of support and here she comes back in good health and as quickly as possible. »
Six French detained in Iran
Two rallies in support of the young woman will be organized in Paris this Sunday, May 7 and May 14. Officially, six French people remain detained in Iran.
In addition to Cécile Kohler and her companion Jacques Paris, there is also Bernard Phelan, a Franco-Irish in fragile health, who has been detained since October 1. A 35-year-old consultant, Louis Arnaud, was arrested on September 28. Another Frenchman is detained, but his identity has never been made public. Finally, Benjamin Brière, 38, detained since May 2020 for espionage, was acquitted in mid-February, but remains behind bars for the time being.
Franco-Iranian researcher Fariba Adelkhah, arrested in June 2019 and then sentenced to five years in prison for undermining national security, has was released on February 10, 2023.
► To read also: France: creation of a support committee for Cécile Kohler detained in Iran since May 2022