France expels Iran diplomat in bomb plot

France has expelled an Iranian diplomat in response to a failed plot to carry out a bomb attack at a rally near Paris, by an exiled Iranian opposition group, diplomatic and security sources say.

France’s Foreign Ministry said in early October there was no doubt the Iranian intelligence ministry had been behind the plot against the June 30 rally. It subsequently froze assets belonging to Tehran’s intelligence services.

Then it went a step further, expelling an Iranian diplomat based in Paris, sources said. The diplomat is said to be an Iranian intelligence operative under diplomatic cover. The fallout from the failed plot has further strained ties between Paris and Tehran.