ISTANBUL

Azerbaijan on Thursday declared four employees of the Iranian Embassy in Baku “persona non grata” and asked them to leave the country within 48 hours.

A statement by the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry read that Iran’s Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary ​​Ambassador Seyed Abbas Mousavi was summoned to the ministry on April 6.

“During the meeting, strong dissatisfaction was expressed to the Iranian Ambassador due to the recent provocative actions demonstrated by his country in relation to Azerbaijan,” the statement said.

The statement further noted that four employees of the Iranian Embassy in Baku were declared "persona non grata" due to their activities that were “incompatible with diplomatic status.”