France and Ireland Confirm the Release of Two Imprisoned Citizens in Iran

On Friday, France and Ireland confirmed the release of Benjamin Brier and Bernard Filan from the Islamic Republic's prison. Emmanuel Macron, the President of France, welcomed the release of these two French citizens in a tweet, thanking all those who helped secure their freedom and promising to continue efforts to bring back other imprisoned compatriots in Iran. The French Foreign Minister also announced in a statement that Benjamin Brier and Bernard Filan are on their way back to France. According to Catherine Colonna, the two French citizens received necessary medical care immediately after their release from prison. Colonna added that she expressed gratitude to all those who worked for the release of these two French citizens during a phone call on Friday morning with her Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. She concluded her statement by saying that the French government will continue its efforts for the release of other imprisoned citizens in Iran. Michael Martin, the Irish Foreign Minister, also expressed happiness over the release of Bernard Filan and Benjamin Brier in a statement. He noted that the past seven months have been extremely difficult for Bernard and his family. Michael Martin thanked the French government and especially Catherine Colonna for their efforts in securing the release of these two citizens. He also referred to his phone conversation on Thursday with his Iranian counterpart and appreciated the Iranian Foreign Ministry's efforts for Mr. Filan's release. Earlier, sources close to the Iranian government announced that Bernard Filan, a French-Irish national, was released for 'humanitarian considerations.' Early Friday, the IRNA news agency reported: 'Bernard Filan, a French-Irish national who was arrested and tried for preparing and sending security information during the peak of the protests in Iran, was released by judicial order and for humanitarian considerations.' Bernard Filan, 64, a dual Irish-French citizen active in the tourism industry, was arrested in early October amid the expansion of anti-government protests in Mashhad. He was initially held in solitary confinement for several weeks and then transferred to Vakilabad prison in Mashhad. Bernard suffers from heart issues and chronic bone problems. Benjamin Brier was also arrested in May 2020 on charges of espionage and subsequently sentenced to eight years in prison. Western countries have described the imprisonment of their citizens by the Islamic Republic as 'political hostage-taking' and have repeatedly called on the Islamic Republic to end this 'cruel' practice. However, the Islamic Republic continues to detain and imprison Western and dual citizens on charges such as 'actions against national security,' rejecting the views of Western parties and without providing any evidence. Currently, several dual citizens are also imprisoned in Iran, including Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz, and Emad Sharqi, Iranian-Americans, Kamran Ghaderi and Masoud Mosahab, Iranian-Austrians, Nahid Taghavi, an Iranian-German citizen, Mehran Raoufi, an Iranian-British citizen, and Ahmadreza Jalali, an Iranian-Swedish citizen. Bernard Filan's sister stated: 'He loved Iran and invited everyone to travel there; please release him for Nowruz.' The family of Bernard Filan expressed concern about the condition of this Iran-loving tourist who has been imprisoned, stating to Voice of America that his physical condition is 'deteriorating.' Relatives of Bernard Filan, the Irish-French citizen imprisoned in Mashhad, reported that his health condition is critical. The family of Bernard Filan mentioned that he was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison. France has called for the immediate release of Bernard Filan and six other French prisoners. Bernard Filan, the French-Irish citizen imprisoned in Mashhad, has ended his hunger strike.