Iranian Embassy Closed, Diplomats Expelled

BethPH
By BethPH Last edited 147 months ago
Iranian Embassy Closed, Diplomats Expelled


The Iranian Embassy in London has closed and its diplomats were asked to leave the UK by 2pm today after attacks on the British Embassy in Tehran.

Protesters stormed the Embassy on Tuesday after Britain imposed sanctions on the Iran central bank last week, following a UN report which suggested Iran may have worked on developing a nuclear arsenal. Iran refutes this, saying it only wants nuclear technology to generate electricity. Iran is the fifth largest oil exporter and while Britain has not backed a ban on Iranian oil imports, sanctions could yet be imposed on Iran.

A blandly uninformative statement on the Iranian Embassy's website says:

IranĀ“s Foreign Ministry expressed regret over the unacceptable actions of a few protesters despite the efforts of Iranian security forces to stop them.

The Kensington-based Embassy has been the target of protests in the past; in February anti-government demonstrators gathered to protest against the Islamic government.

Looks like the Iranian diplomats won't be needing their new embassy building in the near future after all.

Last Updated 02 December 2011