Iran says two French embassy employees barred from returning

InternationalIran says two French embassy employees barred from returningBy Reuters -Aug 17, 2026Add ARY News on GoogleAAResizeDUBAI: Iran said on Monday that two French embassy employees involved in a diplomatic dispute last ​month would not be allowed to return ‌to Iran. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the two had violated the Vienna Convention – which defines the rules ​and privileges of diplomatic missions – engaging in activities ​supporting Iranian civil society. “Insisting that these individuals were ⁠engaged in activities related to supporting civil ​society is itself an admission that the Vienna Convention ​was violated,” Baghaei told a weekly press conference, without elaborating. Tehran has long been highly sensitive to what it sees ​as Western meddling in its internal affairs, especially ​since the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran in ‌late ⁠February in a conflict that continues to rage. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, in an interview with France Inter last month, said the mission of the ​two embassy employees ​concerned was ⁠to “develop programmes supporting Iranian civil society, students, and artists (…) France is one ​of the countries in the world that ​does ⁠the most for Iranian civil society, and we have paid the price for it.” France summoned Iran’s ⁠charge d’affaires ​on July 21 after accusing ​Iranian security forces of detaining and physically intimidating its embassy ​staff in Tehran. .post__content p { word-wrap: break-word; } .post__content img.alignleft { float: left; margin-top: 6px; margin-right: 24px !important; margin-bottom: 12px !important; margin-left: 0; width: auto !important; } .post__content img.alignright { float: right; margin-top: 6px; margin-right: 0; margin-bottom: 12px !important; margin-left: 24px !important; width: auto !important; }