Iranian Diplomats Leave U.S. as Tehran Disputes Expulsions

Two Iranian members of the delegation that attended the United Nations General Assembly in New York have departed the United States after Washington renewed a demand that they leave, according to a U.S. official. Iran disputes the U.S. account, saying the delegation’s departure followed a schedule shared in advance; the circumstances remain unresolved in the available accounts. The U.S. official said the State Department told Iran’s U.N. mission on September 28 that the entire delegation should leave the country. On October 2, U.S. authorities informed the mission that two members were still in New York and again demanded their immediate departure, the official said. One diplomat left Friday night and the other Saturday morning, according to the same account. The account was attributed to a U.S. official and repeated in multiple reports, but those reports trace back to the same source. The material provided does not include independent confirmation of the diplomats’ location, departure arrangements or whether they were formally or practically expelled. Iran’s U.N. mission offered a different timeline.