Iranian consul in Norway resigns to protest treatment with demonstrators in Tehran

"I have resigned from the embassy," Mohammad Reza Haydari told the NRK television channel adding that he relies on the Norwegian authorities' support.

"My conscience does not allow me to further continue to work as a diplomatic representative," he said.

Haydari worked as a diplomatic representative for three years in Oslo. His wife and two sons are reported to reside in Norway, too.

The Iranian embassy spokesman refused to comment on this fact.

The news is nothing more than a rumor circulated in the Western press in an effort to make psychological pressure, the Mehr news agency reported with reference to the Iranian Foreign Ministry' representative, who requested anonymity. There is no need to respond to such reports, the source added.

"The term of Haydari's diplomatic mission in Norway came to an end," the source said." After his return to Iran another diplomat will replace him."

/DPA/