Iranian women rally outside French embassy in Tehran to demand release of Mahdieh Esfandiari

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(22 Oct 2025) IRAN FRANCE RALLY SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS RESTRICTION SUMMARY: NO USE BY BBC PERSIAN, VOA PERSIAN, MANOTO TV, IRAN INTERNATIONAL LENGTH: 1:50 ++The Associated Press is adhering to Iranian law that stipulates all media are banned from providing BBC Persian, VOA Persian, Manoto TV and Iran International any coverage from Iran, and under this law if any media violate this ban the Iranian authorities can immediately shut down that organization in Tehran.++ ASSOCIATED PRESS - NO USE BY BBC PERSIAN, VOA PERSIAN, MANOTO TV, IRAN INTERNATIONAL Tehran - 21 October 2025 1. Women holding banners protesting outside the French embassy 2. French and European flags 3. Women with red tape on mouths 4. Traffic moving along next to protest 5. Poster of Mahdieh Esfandiari with French flag on her mouth, Esfandiari is an Iranian national detained in France 6. Pan of protest 7. SOUNDBITE (Farsi) Zeynab Mousavi, a political-science student: "She (Mahdieh Esfandiari) is now in prison, held in solitary confinement in the most horrific conditions because of her support for oppressed people. We have come here to protest this contradiction, the fact that such treatment is so widespread in today's modern world of international relations. We are here to protest against this contradiction and demand her immediate release." 8. Protesters holding poster showing woman waving Palestinian flag and banners reading (English): "Free Mahdieh” 9. Protesters 10. Poster with Palestinian flag and text reading (English): "Free Mahdieh” 11. SOUNDBITE (Farsi) Niloufar Sadeghi, law student: "We demand the release of Mahdieh Esfandiari from a country supposedly known for its human rights and constitutional law. We demand to know why these rights are not being upheld and why these laws are being disregarded. These rights must be reinstated, and we must soon see her released." 12. Various of protesters painting the words reading (English): "Free Mahdieh," along with an Israeli flag and an upside-down Eiffel Tower 13. Various of protesters outside the French embassy STORYLINE: Tehran residents rallied outside the French embassy on Tuesday to demand the release of an Iranian national detained in France. Esfandiari, a translator living in the French city of Lyon since 2018, was arrested in February on a terror-related charge for alleged posts on Telegram about the Hamas attacks on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 that triggered the war in Gaza, according to French media reports. Iranian women rallying on Tuesday put red-colored tape over their mouths and held up posters of Esfandiari. "She (Mahdieh Esfandiari) is now in prison, held in solitary confinement in the most horrific conditions because of her support for oppressed people," said Zeynab Mousavi, a political-science student who took part in the rally. Tehran has pressed Paris to release Esfandiari. In September, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said his nation was close to making a prisoner swap deal with France. Last week, an Iranian court sentenced two French citizens, Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris to a combined 63 years in prison on espionage and national security charges. The two have been held since 2022 on charges France has denounced as "unjustified and unfounded." Iranian state TV on Tuesday said deputy foreign minister Vahid Jalalzadeh cited Araghchi as saying that Esfandiari's name has been presented as part of a prospective prisoner exchange with France. "We hope this happens soon and that we will see Ms. Esfandiari back in our beloved country," Jalalzadeh said, according to state TV. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/4dbd085b666d45ef932bf5f8c3afb122