France sues Iran at top UN court over detained citizens

Paris has filed a lawsuit against Tehran astatine the apical UN tribunal implicit 2 French citizens who person been held successful Iran for 3 years, the French overseas curate said connected Friday.

The announcement comes arsenic Iranian negotiators are acceptable to conscionable with their counterparts from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany successful Turkey connected Friday for talks connected Iran's atomic programme.

Cecile Kohler, a 40-year-old lit teacher from eastbound France and her spouse Jacques Paris, successful his 70s, were arrested connected May 7, 2022, connected the past time of a tourer travel to Iran.

They person been held connected spying charges, which they person vehemently denied.

In its lawsuit astatine the International Court of Justice (ICJ), France accuses Iran "of violating its work to supply consular protection" to the pair, who "have been held hostage... detained successful appaling conditions that magnitude to torture," Jean-Noel Barrot told France 2 television.

They are among a fig of Europeans inactive held by Iran successful what immoderate European countries, including France, respect arsenic a deliberate strategy of hostage-taking to extract concessions from the West astatine a clip of hostility implicit the Islamic republic's atomic programme.

Kohler and Paris are the past known French detainees successful Iran aft immoderate caller releases and are regarded arsenic "state hostages" by the French government.

The 2 are jailed successful highly pugnacious conditions, according to their families.

mra/ekf/yad