Iran expels second-ranking Bahraini diplomat in Tehran

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has declared Bahrain’s second-ranking diplomat in Tehran persona non grata and given him 72 hours to leave the country, a day after Bahrain withdrew its ambassador, Iranian media reported on Friday.

“According to a Foreign Ministry statement, Tehran has given Bassam al-Dosari 72 hours to leave Iran,” the Fars news agency said on its website.

On Thursday, Bahrain withdrew its ambassador from Tehran and expelled Dosari’s Iranian counterpart from Manama, accusing Iran of being behind recent bomb attacks on the island kingdom’s security forces.

Bahrain’s public prosecutor in March said security forces had seized bomb-making equipment being smuggled from Iraq aboard a passenger bus for use in attacks in Bahrain.

Iran denies any involvement in political violence in Bahrain, which was swept by protests during the 2011 “Arab Spring” uprisings in which the Shi’ite majority demanded political reforms from the Sunni ruling family.