Britain protests to Spain over Gibraltar diplomatic bag incident

LONDON/MADRID (Reuters) - Britain accused Madrid on Tuesday of a "serious infringement" of international protocol, saying Spanish police had opened a British diplomatic bag on the border with its contested territory of Gibraltar. Madrid denied that its officers had opened any diplomatic bag, which are typically used to carry official correspondence. Spain lays claim to Gibraltar, a small rocky outcrop on its southern coast that it ceded to Britain 300 years ago, and tensions have been running high in recent months over the British overseas territory. Britain's Foreign Office said the incident happened last Friday and marked the first time a fellow European Union member and NATO ally had broken international rules by opening a diplomatic bag.

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