Overview
- The pair were transferred from Evin Prison to the French ambassador’s residence and are described by Paris as in safety but barred from leaving Iran.
- Iran’s foreign ministry said they were freed on bail and must remain under supervision until the next legal phase.
- President Emmanuel Macron spoke with them by video call as France dispatched a team to Tehran and pressed for their definitive release.
- Kohler and Paris were convicted in mid-October on espionage charges and received prison terms of 20 and 17 years after their 2022 arrests.
- Speculation about reciprocal steps has grown after Iranian national Mahdieh Esfandiari was moved to house arrest in France and is now at Iran’s embassy in Paris, though no swap has been confirmed.