Iran releases French-German cyclist Lennart Monterlos

By Canadian Press on October 8, 2025.

PARIS (AP) — Iran has released a teenage French-German cyclist who disappeared in June while riding across the country, the French foreign minister said Wednesday.

“Lennart Monterlos is free!” the minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, posted on X.

Monterlos, 19, has since been reunited with his family in France, Barrot’s ministry said in a statement. It did not say when he returned or give other details about his release.

Monterlos was taken into custody in Iran in mid-June. France has accused Iran of engaging in hostage diplomacy.

Two other French nationals, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, have been held in Iran for more than three years in prison conditions that France likens to torture and on charges that Paris says are without foundation.

Barrot on Wednesday again called for their immediate release.

The Associated Press

10
-9