France will expel two Iranian diplomats in the coming days, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot announced on Tuesday, in retaliation for what Paris called a “scandalous and deliberate attack” on two French embassy employees detained in Tehran last month.
Barrot said on X that the expulsion was a direct response to the July 19 detention of two French diplomats by Iranian security services, an incident that strained already fragile relations between Paris and Tehran amid the broader US-Iran military conflict. “It has happened. Two Iranian diplomats in France are being expelled in the coming days,” Barrot wrote, as reported by UNN.
Diplomats Detained for Hours
The two French embassy employees were held for several hours by Iranian intelligence agents, who accused them of conducting unauthorized activities during a period of national security sensitivity. Barrot initially described the incident as an “extremely serious act of intimidation” and a violation of diplomatic immunity. Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence later said the diplomats were briefly detained during an investigation into alleged foreign interference before being handed over to France’s ambassador.
Iran responded by informing Paris that the two French officials would not be permitted to return to Tehran, effectively expelling them from the country. The Associated Press reported that French authorities had already suspended the appointment of a new ambassador to Iran and had not responded to Tehran’s nomination of a new envoy to Paris, underscoring the depth of the diplomatic rupture.
Broader Middle East Tensions
Barrot connected the expulsion to the wider turmoil gripping the region, referencing both the “bloody suppression” of protests inside Iran in January 2026 and the ongoing military bombardments in the US-Iran war. “It is precisely because France stands alongside the Iranian people, supporting its artists, scientists and researchers, that two French diplomats were subjected to a scandalous and deliberate attack,” he wrote.
The incident adds another layer to France’s deteriorating relationship with Tehran, which has been under severe pressure since the outbreak of the US-Iran conflict in early 2026. An internal French foreign ministry memo in August instructed diplomats not to travel to Iran, citing the bomb plot and a toughening of Iran’s position toward the West, according to VOA.
Iranian authorities did not immediately comment on France’s decision. The expulsion follows a pattern of European nations reassessing their diplomatic posture toward Tehran as the conflict between the US and Iran continues to reshape alliances across the Middle East. Germany, the Netherlands, and several other EU members have also scaled back their diplomatic presence in Iran in recent months.
Sources: Bloomberg; UNN; VOA; AP; CNN
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