Iranian authorities detained a French academic [and historian of Islam] and have barred him from leaving the country since January, the French Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.

Stephane Dudoignon was arrested in the sensitive region of Sistan-Baluchestan, in southeastern Iran, on Jan. 30 after photographing a religious procession there, Foreign Ministry spokesman Denis Simonneau said....

Dudoignon, who is married to an Iranian woman, is living with his wife's family in Tehran, the French Le Monde daily reported Wednesday. He is not authorized to leave the city, Le Monde said.