US EditionIranian Stands Trial in France over Social Media Posts Ahead of Possible Prisoner Swap
Mahdieh Esfandiari faces terrorism promotion charges linked to a prisoner swap involving two French detainees held in Iran for over three years, French officials say.
- Iranian national Mahdieh Esfandiari was arrested in France in February on charges of promoting "terrorism" on social media.
- French citizens Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris were arrested in Iran in May 2022, but released in November after more than three years in prison on espionage charges their families denied.
- Tehran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in November that Iran would allow Kohler and Paris to return home in "exchange" for France freeing Esfandiari.
29 Articles
29 Articles
The 39-year-old woman is at the heart of diplomatic negotiations between France and Iran for "apology of an act of terrorism". Tehran hopes that she will be traded against Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris.
HEARING RECORD - Suspected of being an agent of influence of the Iranian regime, the translator is accused of being the administrator of an account glorifying the massacres of 7 October. She could be the subject of an exchange against Jacques Paris and Cécile Kohler, still detained in Iran.
Mahdieh Esfandiari, a possible exchange currency with the French Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, tried to reduce his hate publications on a Telegram channel.
The Mahdieh Esfandiari trial began this Tuesday in Paris. This Iranian is tried for apology of terrorism, and her country wishes to exchange it against Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, the French hostages still prevented from returning to France. At the hearing, the accused endorsed the massacre of 7 October, evoking "an act of resistance".
Mahdieh Esfandiari, a 39-year-old Iranian woman, is tried in Paris for apology and incitement to terrorism. Out of court, she said she ignores everything about a possible exchange with two French women selected in Iran, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris.
Iranian stands trial in France over social media posts ahead of possible prisoner swap
The four-day trial of Iranian translator Mahdieh Esfandiari on accusations of promoting "terrorism" via her social media posts opened on Tuesday. The case has been linked to a possible prisoner swap to secure the release of French citizens Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who were imprisoned in Iran on espionage charges their families have denied.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
