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Britain said on Wednesday it had ordered the immediate closure of Iran's embassy in London and is evacuating all embassy staff in Teheran after closing the embassy stormed by Iranian protesters a day earlier.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague told parliament: "The Iranian charge (d'affaires) in London is being informed now that we require the immediate closure of the Iranian embassy in London and that all Iranian diplomatic staff must leave the United Kingdom within the next 48 hours.

"We have now closed the British embassy in Teheran. We have decided to evacuate all our staff and as of the last few minutes, the last of our UK-based staff have now left Iran," he said.

This does not amount to the severing of diplomatic relations in its entirety. It is an action that reduces UK's relations with Iran to the lowest level consistent with the maintenance of diplomatic relations, he added.

On Tuesday, hundreds of angry Iranians staged protests in front of the British embassy in central Teheran and the British Council compound in the Qolhak area in northern Teheran. Some protesters entered the embassy compounds and removed the British flag.

The rampage came one day after Iran's Guardian Council of the Constitution, the country's highest legislative body, unanimously approved a bill to downgrade diplomatic ties with Britain in response to its "hostile" policy against Iran.

British, French, German schools all located in one of the British compounds attacked on Wednesday were closed until further notice, as a precaution, diplomats said.

Norway said it had temporarily closed its embassy but its diplomats continued to work from elsewhere in Teheran.

International criticism of the embassy assault was swift and broad.

China said Wednesday that the "safety and dignity" of diplomatic personnel and organizations should be ensured.

（中国日报网英语点津 Rosy 编辑）

About the broadcaster:

Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.