May 16, 2010
French teacher, Clothilde Reiss (25) has been released from Iran and is on her way home to France. Arrived and is scheduled to meet with President Sargozy.
Reiss was convicted of “provoking unrest and spying in the aftermath of the election” and was sentenced to 5 years on each count, which was commuted to cold hard cash: $285,000.
The notion Reiss was some type of agitator or spy is hard to fathom. She was in Iran on a 6-month teaching assignment, which happen to coincide with the June 2009 “elections” which no one could have predicted would have been that deadly. And had video of Neda Agha Soltan‘s coldblooded murder not made it out – the world still might know the senseless violence and absolute censorship – not that anything is being done about it.
Reiss was initially arrested July 1 on the tarmac attempting to return to France. She was imprisoned and in August had a mock trial with others just as falsely accused. She pled guilty, admitted guilt and spent 6 weeks in Evin Prison before negotiating for house arrest at the French Embassy.
She appeared in court in January but nothing happened until France allowed Iranian Majid Kakavand to fly home.
Who is he and why does it matter?
Kakavand was arrested in March 2009 at the request of the US on the suspicion of evading export controls to purchase sensitive US technology from Malaysia to sell to the Iranian military. The French arrested him but a French court ruled against extradition to the US and allowed him to return to Iran.
The French are denying it of course, adding that Iran wanted to exchange Reiss for convicted assassin Vakili Rad.
Put it together however you like: Kakavand left France on Friday to fly home to Iran and Reiss left Iran Sunday to fly home to France.
Do not know the fate of British embassy worker Hossein Rassam and French Embassy worker Nazak Afshar who were arrested and tried with Reiss.
Sources: France 24, UK Guardian, Star-Telegram , BCC
