Iran’s ambassador to the UK has been dismissed after hosting an “un-Islamic” party which featured a British singer and a female pianist who was not wearing a hijab.
Mohsen Baharvand hosted the party at the country’s embassy in Kensington, west London, to celebrate the 43rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. After a video of the event emerged on social media, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, Iran’s foreign minister, summoned Mr Baharvand back to Tehran.
The footage, posted on social media, shows the ambassador at a reception attended by Iranian and foreign guests while a female pianist, who is not wearing a hijab, plays alongside a violinist.
Fars news agency, which has close links to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, condemned the “mixed party” as “insulting and far from the principles of the Islamic Revolution which has caused a great deal of anger among the pious Iranians”.
Mr Abdollahian has faced criticism for the selection of ambassadors he has appointed, with some hardliners viewing them as too “liberal and pro-Western”.
The Basij student union at Iran foreign ministry’s faculty of international relations wrote to Mr Abdollahian and demanded the sacking of Mr Baharvand.
“This incident must act as a wake-up call for the top officials of our foreign ministry to avoid any further such happenings by reprimanding those responsible for this breach of our revolutionary principles,” the union said.
Mr Abdollahian has repeatedly signalled to Iranian dual nationals that his ministry is keen to facilitate their safe return to Iran so they can use their expertise and wealth to invest in the country’s progress, without the fear of being taken hostage.
Mr Baharvand had been the ambassador to Britain for less than four months before the party on Feb 11. He previously served as a legal affairs deputy to Javad Zarif, a former Iranian foreign minister.
Mr Baharvand’s exit comes at a critical time for Iran’s relations with Western countries. Months of negotiations with world powers to revive the 2015 nuclear deal are due to reach the final stage with Western diplomats expecting an outcome within days. Iran’s chief negotiator returned to Vienna this weekend.
