Iran apologizes over arrest of Spanish consul in Tehran

Iran formally apologized on Thursday for having detained the Spanish consul in Tehran three days earlier. According to diplomatic sources, Iran's foreign minister, Ali Akbar Salehi, phoned his Spanish counterpart, Trinidad Jiménez, to present his excuses after the latter threatened to recall the Spanish ambassador for consultation. The Spanish government said it was satisfied with the apology.

Spanish consul Ignacio Pérez-Cambra was arrested on Monday by nine men in civilian clothes outside the Spanish embassy in Tehran, after street protests over the clampdown on a pro-reform demonstration. He was then held for four hours at a police station for foreigners. Spain called the event "unacceptable" and "very serious" and the foreign ministry sent a protest to the government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, warning the action represented a serious breach of the Vienna Convention, which ensures the immunity of diplomatic personnel.

In the absence of a reply from Iran, Spain threatened to recall its ambassador if no apologies were proffered. In an unprecedented show of common strength by European diplomacy, at least 10 members of the EU complained to Iranian authorities over the way the Spanish consul was treated. The French Foreign Ministry said it had called in the Iranian ambassador to express its discontent with the violation of diplomacy rules.