Family Says French Traveler Sentenced By Iranian Court To 5 Years In Prison

RFL/RE – Iran has sentenced French national Louis Arnaud, whose family says he was traveling in the country as a tourist, to five years in prison on national-security charges.

Arnaud’s mother said in a statement on November 8 that her son’s trial was held at the Revolutionary Court without him having a lawyer present. A statement from his family added that the 36-year-old banking consultant and “passionate traveler” was innocent of the charges.

“The accusations made against him, namely propaganda and undermining the security of the Iranian state, are completely unfounded,” Sylvie Arnaud said in the statement.

Neither Iranian officials nor the country’s media have confirmed the conviction and sentence.

Arnaud was arrested on September 28, 2022 after a trip that saw him crossing through Italy, Greece, Turkey, Georgia, and Armenia before heading south into neighboring Iran.

While he entered the country at a time when it was being roiled by nationwide protests demanding better living conditions and more freedoms, Arnaud’s family said he had “kept a distance” from the unrest.

Iran is currently holding three other French nationals — Cecile Kohler, Jacques Paris, and a third unidentified person — and has attempted to link them to the protests and discredit the demonstrations by saying they were being fomented by Western governments.

French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Anne-Claire Legendre called Arnaud’s conviction and violations of his basic human rights “unacceptable.”

She called for his “immediate release, as well as that of all French people arbitrarily detained in Iran.”

At least a dozen foreign-passport holders are currently thought to be detained in Iran.

Many Western governments have accused Iran’s regime of taking dual and foreign nationals hostage for the sole purpose of using them in prisoner swaps or as bargaining chips in international negotiations. Tehran has denied the accusations.