A man walks past a graffiti depicting Iranian leader Mojtaba Khamenei in southern Tehran on Sept. 15, 2026. (Credit: Atta Kenare/AFP)
Iran on Thursday gave a Swedish diplomat in Tehran 48 hours to leave the country after Sweden expelled a staff member from the Iranian embassy in Stockholm.
The Swedish ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry in Tehran to protest against the Swedish decision, which is "unjustified and contrary to international law," Iran's foreign ministry said in a statement broadcast by state television.
Swedish authorities had on Wednesday accused Iran of having long "conducted activities that threaten security in and against Sweden, targeting both individuals who oppose the Iranian regime and various Jewish and Israeli interests in our country".
Iran called the accusations "baseless" on Thursday.
Sweden has a large Iranian community, including opponents living in exile.
Diplomatic relations between the two countries have been tense for several years.
In March, Iran executed an Iranian-Swedish citizen on charges of spying for Israel, the Islamic republic's sworn enemy.
Another Swedish-Iranian, Ahmadreza Djalali, has been imprisoned in Iran for more than 10 years. He was convicted in 2017 of collaborating with Israel's Mossad spy agency.
Iran does not recognise dual citizenship.
The Swedish Security Service has previously accused Iran of recruiting criminal gang members to commit "acts of violence" against Israeli and other interests in Sweden — a claim Iran has denied.
Since the start of the Gaza war in Oct. 2023, several Israeli interests in Sweden have been targeted, according to the Swedish government.
In Feb. 2024, police recovered a grenade that had been thrown into the grounds of the Israeli embassy in Stockholm.
