Mahdieh Esfandiari, an Iranian activist supporting the Palestinian people, has now been released conditionally from a French prison after being incarcerated for more than seven months.

Why it matters:  Esfandiari, who has lived in France for the past eight years, mysteriously disappeared on March 1, 2025, prompting her family to alert Iranian authorities. Subsequent consular follow-ups revealed that the French police had arrested her.

Esfandiari’s "crime" was her vocal support for Palestinians and her activity on a pro-Palestine Telegram channel. She spent more than seven months behind bars in a French prison. Her conditional release has been welcomed by Iranian authorities.

State of play:

According to Iran Press News Agency from Paris, France's judiciary granted a conditional release to Mahdieh Esfandiari, and she was released from prison in the early hours of Thursday moning (2:15 a.m.), Tehran time.

Her trial will begin in a French court in about three months. This Iranian citizen had been in prison for seven months without due trial until two weeks ago, when the French newspaper Le Monde reported that she would face a judge in January next year on charges of supporting terrorism. Mahdieh Esfandiari had posted content on Telegram regarding support for the resistance of the people of Gaza. According to Le Monde, as a result of this, she was pursued on charges of establishing a network to promote and support terrorism via the internet and social media. Mahdieh Esfandiari came to France as a student and after studying at the University of Lyon, engaged in various activities including teaching and working as a translator in a company.

According to Le Monde, she had announced her intention to return to Iran, but she was arrested and imprisoned while planning her return. The charges against her relate to a year and a half before her arrest. Some legal sources have stated that even if Mahdieh Esfandiari is convicted in court on the charges brought against her, given the time she has already spent in prison, the remaining duration of her sentence would be only a few months.

Zoom out: 

Iran's ambassador to Paris emphasized in an interview with a French network that he would make every effort to secure the release of these two individuals. Two weeks ago, Iran released Linart Montreles, a French-German national who was arrested in Iran during the 12-day war.

M.Derakhshandeh - A.Akbari