The United Kingdom and several other countries, including Switzerland—which represents U.S. interests in Iran—have announced the withdrawal of their diplomatic staff from Iran due to the ongoing war with Israel.
"Due to the current security situation, we have taken the precautionary measure of temporarily withdrawing our British staff from Iran. Our embassy continues to operate remotely," the Foreign Office said in a statement.
"We take the protection of our staff and British citizens extremely seriously, and we have long advised against all travel to Iran," the ministry added.
Earlier, Switzerland announced that it had "temporarily" closed its embassy in Tehran but continued to represent U.S. interests in Iran.
"The expatriate staff have left Iranian territory and are safe," said the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs.
Five members of the expatriate staff and their dependents had already left Iran for Turkmenistan on June 17.
The rest of the staff—seven people including Ambassador Nadine Olivieri Lozano—have now also left Iran by land and arrived in Azerbaijan.
The Swiss ministry "remains in close contact" with the local staff, who, for security reasons, are no longer going to the embassy premises.
In the absence of diplomatic or consular relations between the United States and Iran, Switzerland has officially represented U.S. interests in Iran through its embassy in Tehran since 1980, as part of its “good offices.”
Australia announced on Friday that it had suspended operations at its embassy in Tehran and ordered its diplomatic staff and their families to leave the country.
"This is not a decision taken lightly. It is based on the deteriorating security environment in Iran," said Foreign Minister Penny Wong during a press conference in Adelaide.
The government has advised all Australians to leave Iran if they can do so safely. According to the minister, about 2,000 Australians and family members wish to leave Iran, while 1,200 Australian nationals are currently in Israel.
Portugal, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, and New Zealand have also temporarily closed their diplomatic missions in Iran.
Israel, which accuses Iran of being close to developing a nuclear weapon, launched airstrikes against its arch-enemy a week ago, sparking deadly exchanges.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he was giving himself "two weeks" to decide whether to launch a potential U.S. military intervention alongside Israel.
AFP
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