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Protesters in Tehran burn British flag - Getty images |
The Iranian embassy in London was shut down as Britain expelled all its staff on Wednesday, in response to the violent attacks on British diplomats in Tehran.
Violence broke out on Tuesday, with large crowds vandalising and attacking the British embassy in Tehran. Offices were ransacked and windows broken. The British flag was burnt outside with protesters chanting "death to Britain". UK staff were trapped inside for several hours before the Tehran security forces brought the situation under control and evacuated the staff to safety.
Britain's foreign secretary told parliament on Wednesday,
"The Iranian charge (d'affaires) in London is being informed now that we require the immediate closure of the Iranian embassy in London and that all Iranian diplomatic staff must leave the United Kingdom within the next 48 hours."
"We have now closed the British embassy in Tehran. We have decided to evacuate all our staff and as of the last few minutes, the last of our UK-based staff have now left Iran."
Hague went on to assert it was "fanciful" that the Iranian authorities could not have prevented the level of violence seen. He added, the attack could not have occurred without "some degree of regime consent".
The violence comes after Britain banned all its financial institutions from dealings with Iran, last week, after a report by the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency states Iran may be developing nuclear arsenal.
