Iran: the sordid diplomacy of hostages
Audio 7:30 p.m.
A photo of Benjamin Brière arrested in 2020 for spying in Iran.
© AFP
By: Anne Corpet Follow
1 min
His name is Benjamin Brière, he is a 36-year-old Frenchman from Lyon, a lover of travel and adventure.
He traveled the world in a van he had fitted out.
In May 2020, he was arrested in Iran: he had taken photos in a national park on the Turkmenistan border with a small recreational drone, one of those small flying devices that are commonly found.
No-go zone, authorities said.
Advertising
After a sham trial, Benjamin Brière, who has always claimed to be a simple tourist, was sentenced this week to eight years in prison for espionage and an additional eight months for propaganda against the Islamic Republic. He is one of a dozen foreign nationals currently detained by Iran. The Tehran authorities make no secret of it: these prisoners can be used as bargaining chips. Indeed, the use of hostages as a diplomatic instrument is one of the hallmarks of the Islamic Republic. As soon as it needs a negotiating lever, or when it wants to obtain the release of an Iranian detained abroad, it resorts to this process, and has done so for decades: the best known example, is takingTehran Embassy hostages shortly after the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
Thus, the fate of foreign nationals currently detained in Iranian jails hangs on issues that are completely beyond them.
Decryption with
:
- Thierry Coville
, researcher at the Institute of International and Strategic Relations (IRIS), specialist in Iran.
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
google-play-badge_EN
Iran
France
Justice
Diplomacy
On the same subject
Former American hostage in Tehran calls for the release of Westerners detained in Iran
Frenchman Benjamin Brière sentenced to eight years in prison in Iran
Accused of spying in Iran, Frenchman Benjamin Brière expected in court