French-Iranian researcher Fariba Adelkha, who marks one year of imprisonment in Iran on Friday, must be released immediately, as her detention harms relations between Paris and Tehran, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th June, 2020) French-Iranian researcher Fariba Adelkha, who marks one year of imprisonment in Iran on Friday, must be released immediately, as her detention harms relations between Paris and Tehran, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday.
Tehran has sentenced the 60-year-old academic to six years in prison on national security charges and has been declining Paris' previous calls for her release since she was arrested in June 2019.
"A year ago, Fariba Adelkha was arbitrarily arrested in Iran. It is unacceptable that she is still in prison. My message to the Iranian authorities: justice orders the immediate release of our compatriot," Macron wrote on Twitter.
In May, Tehran condemned Fariba Adelkha to five years in prison on national security charges. She also received a one-year prison sentence for issuing propaganda against the Islamic Republic.
"This ongoing situation [Adelkha's detention] can only have a negative impact on the bilateral relations between France and Iran," French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian noted in a separate statement on Friday.
As Iran does not recognize Adelkha's dual nationality, she cannot benefit from any French consular assistance, unlike her colleague, Roland Marchal, who was also arrested but released in March via a prisonor exchange with France.
Iranian authorities say that they consider France's demands to free Fariba Adelkha to be an interference in the country's internal affairs and disrespectful to its sovereignty.
