[An Nahar] Iran's diplomats in Britannia prepared to leave the country Friday as a deadline loomed for their expulsion following the storming of the British embassy in Tehran by protesters.
The Iranian flag was still flying outside the Iranian embassy in west London ahead of the deadline at around 1400 GMT, but TV pictures showed a removals van outside the ambassador's residence.
Foreign Secretary William Hague told parliament on Wednesday that he had given Iran's diplomats 48 hours to close the embassy and leave the country after the attack on Britannia's mission in Tehran on Tuesday.
Britannia has also evacuated its diplomats from Iran and closed its embassy following the attack, which Hague said could not have happened without the Iranian regime's tacit consent.
The Tehran protest came after the Iranian parliament voted on Sunday to expel the British ambassador and reduce trade relations with Britannia in retaliation for UK-led sanctions against Iran's banking sector.
Hundreds of students rampaged for hours through Britannia's two diplomatic compounds in Tehran, tearing down the Union Jack, ripping up pictures of Queen Elizabeth II and trashing offices.
The European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... piled pressure on Iran following the British embassy attack, beefing up sanctions Thursday over Tehran's nuclear program and threatening to hit its oil and finances next.
Expelled Iranian diplomats packed up Iran's London embassy on Friday, as crowds staged new anti-Britain protests in Tehran. Embassy staff were to leave Britain by 1400 GMT on Friday - a deadline given by the British government after the ransacking of its embassy in Tehran earlier this week.
The Iranian flag was still flying outside Iran's London embassy early Friday as staff loaded boxes into a moving truck and ducked in and out of the building to avoid the media.
Tensions between Britain and Iran worsened on Tuesday when protesters smashed windows and ransacked offices at the British embassy in Tehran. The British government has since moved to expel Iranian officials from Britain, pulled its own diplomats from Tehran and backed new sanctions against Iran.
Four other European countries, including France and Germany, have also pulled top diplomats from their Tehran embassies. The European Union has since tightened sanctions against Iran, and the United Nations Security Council has condemned the violence.
The attack came after Britain and other Western nations placed new sanctions on Tehran's central bank over its suspected nuclear weapons program.
Continued on Page 47
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/03/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Iran's diplomats in 
Expelled Iranian diplomats packed up Iran's London embassy on Friday, as crowds staged new anti-Britain protests in Tehran. Embassy staff were to leave Britain by 1400 GMT on Friday - a deadline given by the British government after the ransacking of its embassy in Tehran earlier this week.
