PARIS — Emmanuel Macron on Sunday confirmed that French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris have been released from detention in Iran and are on their way back to France, thanking Oman for its mediation efforts in securing their freedom.

“Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris are free and on their way to French territory… Thank you to the Omani authorities for their mediation efforts,” Macron said in a statement, calling their release “a relief for all of us, and obviously for their families.”

Kohler, a teacher and trade unionist, and Paris, her partner, were detained in Iran in May 2022 during a tourist visit. Iranian authorities accused them of espionage—charges consistently denied by France, which maintained they were arbitrarily detained.

Their case had become one of the most high-profile examples of what Western governments describe as Iran’s use of foreign detainees as diplomatic leverage. Paris had largely remained out of the public spotlight, while Kohler’s detention drew sustained advocacy from unions and rights groups in France.

French officials had repeatedly pressed Tehran for their release, raising the matter in bilateral and multilateral forums. The breakthrough appears to have come through quiet diplomatic channels, with Oman once again playing a behind-the-scenes role.