The UK government announced plans on July 13, 2026 to ban Iran's IRGC as a foreign-backed threat to national security, in a "proscription-like" designation. (Credit: Illustration photo Justin Tallis/AFP)
The United Kingdom has announced that it has withdrawn its remaining diplomatic staff from Iran, where a U.S. bombing campaign has continued since hostilities resumed on July 7.
The embassy, which closed its doors in January, continues to operate remotely, the Foreign Office said.
"Due to the security situation, British staff have been temporarily withdrawn from Iran," the Foreign Office stated Wednesday in an update to its travel advice page.
When asked, the ministry declined to specify how many people were affected by this withdrawal.
A similar measure had been taken in February, before the start of the American-Israeli attacks against Iran.
The Foreign Office advises against all travel to Iran, stating that British nationals and those with dual British and Iranian citizenship face "a significant risk of being arrested, questioned, or detained."
A British couple, Lindsay and Craig Foreman, were arrested in January 2025 in Iran while on a round-the-world motorcycle trip.
They were sentenced in February to 10 years in prison for espionage, a charge they deny. The family stated on July 15 that Craig Foreman's prison sentence had been extended by two years.
On Sunday, two French diplomats based in Tehran were "brutally apprehended in a private setting by regime security officers" and detained for nearly four hours due to their support for Iranian civil society, according to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot.
Iranian authorities denied this assault, stating that the diplomats had been "briefly questioned" by security services after a "meeting with several persons wanted by the authorities."
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