France summoned Iran's charge d'affaires over the detention and alleged assault of two French embassy employees in Tehran, as the two governments traded accusations of diplomatic misconduct, state media reported on July 21.

The dispute deepens a rupture between Paris and Tehran already strained by regional conflict, with France weighing a reduction in its embassy presence and Iran lodging a counter-protest over the same two diplomats, a rare instance of both capitals framing each other as the offending party in a single incident.

France's foreign ministry said the two staff were detained without cause for several hours on July 19, interrogated, and, in the case of one, physically assaulted, before being allowed to return to the embassy. Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called the episode an extremely serious act of intimidation and a flagrant violation of diplomatic immunity.

"France expects the Iranian authorities to shed light on this incident, punish the perpetrators, and ensure the security of its premises and personnel," the ministry said.

Barrot said the two employees were safe and would return to France, adding that they carried French programmes supporting civil society and Iranian artists and scientists.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Barrot in a telephone call that the conduct of the two French diplomats in Tehran had itself been unacceptable and inconsistent with diplomatic norms, according to state broadcaster IRIB. Araghchi called on Paris to prevent any repeat and to take the necessary measures.

In the same call, Araghchi said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz was a direct consequence of what he described as US violations of commitments under an Islamabad memorandum of understanding, and said responsibility for the fallout lay with the party that had abandoned agreed terms.