Ireland expelled a Russian diplomat today after an investigation found Russia had stolen the identities of six Irish citizens to use for spies' passports, the foreign ministry said.

A senior ministry official told the Russian ambassador Tuesday that "the activities of Russian intelligence services in connection with the forgery of Irish passports and the effective theft of the identity of six Irish citizens are completely unacceptable," the ministry said in a statement.

It is the second time Ireland has acted over forged passports -- last June Dublin expelled an Israeli diplomat over the use of Irish passports by suspects accused of murdering a Hamas official in Dubai earlier that year.

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