Critics say Iran backed embassy attacks

TEHRAN, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Iranian opposition organizations claim the raid on the British Embassy in Tehran was sanctioned by state authorities and not an impromptu act as Tehran claims.

London pulled diplomats out of Iran after demonstrators stormed the embassy grounds this week. Tehran claimed the unrest was a spontaneous uprising by students upset with London's diplomatic stance on Iran.

Opposition student organizations Tahkim Vahdat and Advar Tahkim claim the attack was carried out by the student basij militia, an allegation backed by British Foreign Secretary William Hague earlier this week.

The demonstrations, however, weren't likely orchestrated by supporters of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, London newspaper The Guardian reports. His conservative opponents, the report adds, have moved against the two-term president.

Tehran voted to downgrade diplomatic ties with London. Iranian officials had said the government has been frustrated with London for decades. The BBC, meanwhile, reports a former British ambassador, unnamed in the breaking report, said the attack on the embassy had state support.

Tehran is facing increasing isolation by the international community in part because of its controversial nuclear program. U.S. lawmakers voted this week to hit Iran with more sanctions targeting its Central Bank.