The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic said that two employees of the French embassy have left Iran and will not be able to return.

Ismail Baqai added that the French ambassador in Tehran was summoned.

Baqai added that French officials must apologize and said: “Insisting that these individuals were engaged in activities related to supporting civil society is an admission that the Diplomatic Rights Convention has been violated.”

The Intelligence Ministry of the Islamic Republic said in a statement last week that its agents, “in the process of addressing one of the important cases of infiltration and foreign interference and while carrying out a judicial order to detain two of the accused in the case,” became aware of the unlawful presence of two French diplomats at the site of a secret meeting point.”