British embassy staff in Iran 'will face trial'

SOME of the British Embassy's Iranian staff held in Tehran will be put on trial, ruling clerics said today.

Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati made the announcement in a prayer sermon. He said the staff "made confessions".

Jannati did not say how many would be tried or on what charges. Earlier Iranian officials said all but one of the eight embassy personnel arrested on June 27 had been released, but European Union officials said they believed more than one was still being held.

Jannati is the head of the Guardian Council, a powerful body in Iran's clerical rule, and is close to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Mr Brown's spokesman said: "We are aware of these reports. We are concerned about these reports and we are seeking clarification on this as a matter of urgency."

Jannati, head of Iran's powerful Guardian Council, did not say how many of the embassy's Iranian staff, held since the weekend, would be tried or on what charges.

But he claimed that the staff "made confessions".

Iranian state media previously claimed that all but one of those arrested at the weekend had been released.

They were accused by the Iranian authorities of being involved in anti-government protests.