Widening Mobilization in France for the Release of French Citizens Detained in Iran

Hostages for over 1,000 days in Iran, rally in support of Cécile and Jacques in Clermont-Ferrand

 

“I Was Tortured in Evin Prison”: Former French Detainee Olivier Grondeau Speaks Out as a Witness

 

Paris, May 8, 2025 — Yesterday in Paris, human rights defenders gathered to demand the release of two French labor activists imprisoned in Iran for nearly three years. Support continues to grow for the last two French hostages held by Iranian authorities: Cécile Kohler, a 40-year-old literature teacher from eastern France, and her partner Jacques Paris, now in his seventies.

To mark the third anniversary of their arrest on May 7, 2022, demonstrations were held in 45 cities across France, drawing thousands of supporters. At Place de la Nation in Paris, around 300 people came together, including Cécile’s parents and sister, as well as former hostages Benjamin Brière, Bernard Phelan, and Olivier Grondeau.

Grondeau, a French citizen who was previously held in Ward 209 of Evin Prison, delivered a powerful speech in Persian during the Paris gathering. He directly addressed Iranian officials, saying:

“You claim there is no torture in Ward 209 of Evin Prison? I have experienced torture there myself. Minister Ejei, Minister of Intelligence — you should be ashamed.”

Olivier Grondeau was arrested in Shiraz in 2022 at age 34 and sentenced to five years in prison on charges of “espionage and conspiracy against the Islamic Republic.” His mother, Thérèse Grondeau, confirmed the details of his imprisonment. He was released on March 20, 2025, as announced by President Emmanuel Macron on X (formerly Twitter).

“Mr. Ejei, Mr. Salavati, Mr. Minister of Intelligence and Torture — aren’t you all ashamed of yourselves? Seriously? But you should be ashamed of yourselves! Don’t worry — from now on, I can tell you that we are here.”

 

Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris were arrested on the last day of a tourist trip to Iran and accused of espionage — a charge they and their supporters strongly deny. As of this week, they have been imprisoned for three years.

 

Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi said to France Inter on January 8, 2025 she was “very worried” about Frenchwoman Cécile Kohler, who has been held “in solitary confinement” in Iran since May 2022 in “terrible conditions .” Speaking to France Inter radio, Mohammadi, who was granted temporary medical leave in early December, expressed “concern for the health of Cécile ,” who is being held in a high-security section of Evin Prison in Tehran.

“I was able to ask questions to prisoners who spent a few days in cells with her. They say that physically, she is extremely weak, and I am very worried about her,” said the 52-year-old activist, whose comments were translated into French.

“Isolation is terrible, it’s torture. There are no walks. When I was there, we only had three outings to the yard, for only 20 minutes, per week, and her cell door is locked 24 hours a day, except to go to the infirmary,” Narges Mohammadi said. “Being like her for three years, unable to move, unable to get some fresh air, could be fatal. Being in solitary confinement for so long is unthinkable, unbearable ,” she warned.

Here is her full interview on Cécile Kohler with France Inter :

“About Cécile Kohler, I know that she is being held in the infamous Ward 209, a security ward. When I was in the general ward of Evin Prison, I often asked those who had been in the solitary cells of Ward 209 and were later transferred to our ward about Cécile. She is being kept in Ward 209 of the Ministry of Intelligence, a highly notorious security ward. I would ask my cellmates if they had seen Cécile or heard anything about her.

Some of my cellmates had briefly shared a cell with Cécile and said that she was in very poor physical condition, extremely weak, and in a very bad state. I am genuinely worried about her. I myself have been in those solitary cells before.

When I was there, access to fresh air was allowed only three times a week, and each time for just 20 minutes. I know the doors of those cells remain locked 24 hours a day, except for trips to the restroom or for interrogations. These long periods in a small cell without light, air, or movement have a devastating impact on a person’s health. These few factors alone are enough to endanger someone’s well-being.

It is an isolated and confined environment, and this prolonged isolation can put immense psychological and emotional pressure on an individual, as well as threaten their physical health. This is a good opportunity to express my grave concern about the mental and physical consequences of solitary confinement and white torture on Cécile’s health. Being held in solitary confinement for such an extended period is unimaginable and beyond belief.”