Iran appeals to UN over ‘tightening restrictions’ on its diplomats in New York

Tehran calls on the United Nations to intervene in what it calls the “tightening of restrictions on Iran’s diplomatic mission to the United Nations in New York,” according to a foreign ministry statement published on Thursday.

The statement also condemns a decision by the US State Department “to prevent the continuation of the activities” of three employees of Iran’s mission in New York.

The statement does not specify when the restrictions had been tightened, but in September, the United States imposed strict limits on members of the Iranian delegation attending the UN General Assembly in New York, curbing their movement and banning access to wholesale stores and luxury goods.

“The imposition of extensive restrictions on the residence and movement of Iranian diplomats, tightening restrictions on bank accounts, and imposing restrictions on daily purchases are among the pressures and harassment… to disrupt the normal and legal duties of Iranian diplomats,” the statement says.

Prior to the September restrictions, Iranian delegation members were allowed to travel between the United Nations, the Iranian UN mission, the Iranian UN ambassador’s residence and John F. Kennedy International Airport.

Tensions between Tehran and Washington heightened after the two countries engaged in five rounds of indirect nuclear negotiations that ended with a 12-day air war in June in which Israel and the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites.