“The British ambassador took part in a small gathering that was against the Islamic Republic; he took photos of the gathering and tried to organize it; this is inconsistent with the international norms and regulations,” Abolfazl Hassanbeigi, a member of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told Mehr News Agency.
Noting that Macaire has “interfered in the internal affairs of our country and acted against the security protocols by participating in an illegal gathering”, Hassanbeigi urged the Foreign Ministry to expel the UK ambassador to prevent the repetition and normalization of such behavior in the future.
Macaire was briefly detained during a protest in front of Amir Kabir University in downtown Tehran on Saturday when he was organizing and provoking people angry at the government’s handling of the aftermaths of a plane crash earlier this week.
He was summoned to the Iranian Foreign Ministry on Sunday for “unconventional behavior” inconsistent with his diplomatic status and being present in an “illegal gathering”.
MNA/4823501