France summons Iran's charge d'affaires for embassy staff incident

Paris summoned Iran's charge d'affaires on Tuesday following what the French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux described as an "extremely serious" act of intimidation targeting two members of the embassy staff in Iran on July 19.

"This extremely serious and unacceptable violation of the integrity of our agents cannot remain without consequences," Confavreux said in a statement, noting that Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot had conveyed the same message to his Iranian counterpart on Monday.

The Iranian diplomat was summoned by the secretary-general of the French Foreign Ministry at Barrot's request, according to the statement.

Confavreux said France conveyed its "strongest condemnation" of a "premeditated and deliberate" aggression.

He said France considers the incident "a flagrant violation of international law and the Vienna Conventions," which guarantee the security of diplomatic personnel and form the basis of relations between states.

Confavreux also said France expects Iranian authorities to establish the facts surrounding the incident, punish those responsible and ensure the security of French diplomatic premises and personnel in accordance with their international obligations.

The summons follows accusations made by Barrot on Monday that two members of the embassy staff in Tehran had been detained and questioned by Iranian security services.

Barrot said one of them was physically assaulted and described the incident as an "extremely serious act of intimidation."

He also warned that it "cannot remain without consequences."

There has been no Iranian response to the allegations.