Tehran, July 18: The Swiss and Iranian governments denied reports yesterday that Bern’s ambassador to Tehran was detained by the Islamic republic’s security forces earlier this week.
Iranian state media said police had briefly detained ambassador Livia Leu Agosti, whose embassy represents US interests in Iran, on Wednesday while she was on a trip to North Khorasan province.
Citing “informed sources,” the website of Press TV, the Iranian channel in English, said Agosti was detained “because her identity was not established at the time” but freed a few hours later.
This was despite Agosti’s trip to a provincial village having been planned in “coordination and full permission of the foreign ministry,” state television said on its website, also quoting an informed source.
“But the local security forces temporarily arrested on July 14 the Swiss ambassador because her identity was not established.
–PTI