As air quality in Tehran and much of neighboring Alborz province reaches hazardous levels, medical experts are advising the vulnerable to stay indoors, with preparations underway for an emergency response.
In the capital, levels had reached 260 in the past 24 hours with other areas exceeding 300, entering the 'hazardous' category, the highest state of alert in the country's which range between zero and 500.
Health officials have advised people with existing medical conditions, children, and pregnant women to avoid outdoor exposure.
In neighboring Alborz province, conditions have worsened further. Kamran Haghi, acting head of the provincial meteorological office, confirmed that air quality in most areas had entered the hazardous category overnight.
“Pollution levels in parts of the province surpassed 300, and strong winds carrying dust will continue through the end of the week,” he said. He urged residents to keep windows shut and use filtered masks.
Mohammadreza Fallahnejad, acting director of Alborz’s crisis management office, linked the deterioration to low seasonal rainfall. “With reduced precipitation this year, the situation is intensifying each day,” he said.
The provincial environmental department has called on hospitals and emergency services to prepare for a rise in respiratory cases.
The recent dust affecting the country stems from both domestic and foreign sources, which operate independently of each other, said Behzad Raygani, acting secretary of the National Headquarters for Dust Storm Policy and Coordination, as reported by Tasnim.
“Part of this dust has entered from Syria and parts of Iraq, impacting our western provinces and parts of the central region. These sources have become particularly active in Syria,” he added.
“Aside from the western half and parts of central Iran, most provinces are dealing with dust due to internal and local sources.”
“It’s a worrying disappearance, and we are in contact with the family,” Minister Laurent Saint-Martin, who oversees French nationals overseas, told RTL radio.
Saint-Martin stopped short of confirming whether the Iranian authorities were involved in the disappearance, but added: “It is worrying because Iran has a deliberate policy of taking Western hostages.”
The man, who also holds German nationality, has not been identified publicly.
French media reported on Sunday that he was an 18-year-old who had been on a solo cycling trip in the region and went missing a few days after Israeli airstrikes targeted Iranian sites in mid-June.
AFP reported that the French man has not contacted his family since June 16, citing a French diplomatic source.“We are in contact with the family about this,” the source was quoted as saying.
The source described the case as “worrying," and advised French nationals against travelling to Iran due to Tehran’s “deliberate policy of taking Westerners hostage.”
The missing person alert was first posted on social media by friends seeking help with locating the tourist.
While French authorities have not named the individual, the French daily Le Figaro identified the missing person as Lennart Monterlos, 18, citing a missing person alert posted on Instagram.
According to Le Figaro, Monterlos describes himself on Instagram as passionate about climbing and cycling. In June 2024, he announced plans for “a one-year cycling trip across Eurasia,” calling it a “dream” he hoped to fulfill before starting university.
His planned route spanned “400 days, 35,000 km,” across “35 countries.”
His last public location update, posted on the travel app Polarsteps, showed him in Shiraz, Iran, on June 3, with a planned stop in Kashan. The account has not been updated since.
Monterlos's disappearance follows recent developments in the case of Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, two French citizens arrested in Iran in 2022, who were recently notified of charges punishable by death—including espionage for Israel— after which they were moved to an undisclosed location.
Earlier on Sunday, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported a phone call between French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, during which they discussed consular affairs and regional developments.
IRNA’s report did not specify whether the two diplomats discussed the cases of Lennart Monterlos, Cécile Kohler, or Jacques Paris. However, the term "consular affairs" usually refers to the cases of citizens detained in the two countries.
