French citizens Cécile Coler and Jacques Paris, previously convicted of espionage in Iran, were successfully evacuated thanks to a carefully planned operation in which Azerbaijan played a key role.
According to Intelligence Online, Baku provided French intelligence services with transit assistance, ensuring their safe passage through its territory. The evacuation route included departure from the French Embassy in Tehran, travel through the northern regions of the country, a stop in Tabriz, and then crossing the border into Azerbaijan, where their subsequent journey was monitored by a diplomatic escort.
Cécile Coler and Jacques Paris, who spent nearly four years in an Iranian prison, arrived in Paris. They were received by President Macron at the Élysée Palace.
The publication notes that this success contributed to the resumption of dialogue between Paris and Baku. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot personally thanked his Azerbaijani counterpart, Jeyhun Bayramov, for his assistance. A representative of the Élysée Palace then arrived in Baku for talks with the head of Azerbaijan's foreign intelligence service.
