Germany declares 2 Iranian diplomats persona non grata

BERLIN (AA) - Germany on Wednesday declared two Iranian diplomats persona non grata in response to Tehran’s death sentence to German-Iranian dissident Jamshid Sharmahd.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock slammed Iranian court’s decision, and said the Iranian embassy’s charge d'affaires was summoned to the ministry to condemn the decision.

“He was told that we do not accept the massive violation of the rights of a German citizen,” Baerbock said in a statement.

“As a result, the German government has declared two members of the Iranian embassy to be persona non grata, and asked them to leave Germany immediately,” she added.

Baerbock urged Iranian authorities to revoke the death sentence against Sharmahd, and give him a fair trial and due process of appeal.