Two French citizens detained in Iran since May 2022 are reportedly in good health and being held in good detention conditions, according to Iran, denying recent claims their condition was worsening.
Judiciary spokesman Asghar Jahangir told reporters in Tehran on Tuesday: "The two are... in good health, so any claim regarding their poor condition is denied," citing a report from the authorities.
The spokesperson was referring to French couple Cecile Koehler and Jacques Paris, who were arrested on charges of espionage and will have their next court hearing on 24 November.
In October 2022, Iran's state television aired what it called "espionage confessions" by the two detainees.
The French government condemned the broadcast as "shameful, revolting and unacceptable", labelling the pair as "state hostages".
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Last month, dozens of people protested in Paris over what Kohler's sister, Noemi Kohler, described as the couple's "alarming" physical and psychological condition.
In an interview, Noemi Kohler said the couple – who are being held in the high-security Evin prison outside the capital – were "only allowed out three times a week that they almost never see the light of day and that they sleep on the floor, without mattresses".
She also alleged their lawyers had never been allowed to visit them.
France pushes for 'immediate release'
Jahangir, however maintains the couple "have been in contact with their relatives through the consulate", adding that they "have all human and legal rights".
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot had previously met with families of French nationals detained in Iran, saying his government was pushing for their immediate release.
Another French citizen – identified only by his first name – Olivier, has been in detention since October 2022 and the French authorities have not released details of his case.
They are among several European passport holders in Iranian custody, some of them dual nationals.
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This comes as Foreign Minister Barrot also praised the "courage" of a young Iranian woman who was arrested after publicly stripping as a protest against harassment by security agents, in a video that has gone viral on social media.
Speaking on France 2 broadcaster on Tuesday, Barrot expressed admiration for the woman, calling her "a symbol of resistance" and "an icon in the fight for women's rights in Iran and wherever women's freedoms are under threat."
(with Newswires)
