France is to pull out part of its diplomatic staff from Tehran following the ransacking of Britain's embassy this week by a pro-regime mob, adding to the backlash on Saturday against an increasingly defensive Iran. The decision - a temporary precaution according to one French diplomat - underlined the seriousness of the crisis developing between Iran and the West amid the ratcheting up of sanctions over Tehran's controversial nuclear efforts.
Britain has already evacuated all staff from its Tehran embassy following Tuesday's rampage, and ordered Iran's in London closed. The expelled Iranian diplomats arrived back in Tehran early on Saturday, passing through airport service corridors to avoid media - and a pro-regime welcoming crowd of 150 yelling "Death to Britain."
The European Union on Thursday slapped extra sanctions on Iran and warned more could be on the way because of the embassy assault, while the US Congress is poised to pass a law hitting Iran's central bank. Political tensions are rising in tandem with speculation that Israel is mulling air strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, with or without US backing.
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