Overview

• French officials have officially designated Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris as state hostages after more than three years of detention in Iran without due process.
• Kohler and Paris are accused of espionage, risk the death penalty under Iranian law and have been denied consular access or legal representation.
• France has intensified legal appeals and international pressure on Tehran to secure their release and improve detainee rights.
• Eighteen-year-old tourist Lennart Monterlos disappeared on June 16 near the Strait of Hormuz and is feared to have been arbitrarily detained in a similar case of hostage diplomacy.
• Since the 1979 revolution, Iran has held at least one Western national each year as a diplomatic bargaining chip, releasing some like Olivier Grondeau and Louis Arnaud after lengthy detentions but leaving others in limbo.