MOSCOW, Jan. 2 (UPI) — Nearly three dozen Russian diplomats left Washington, D.C., on Sunday — exiled by President Barack Obama over Moscow’s alleged meddling in November’s presidential election.
Russian officials confirmed that 35 diplomats indeed left the country out of a Washington airport Sunday, just days after Obama issued the edict, according to multiple sources.
Obama had given the diplomats just three days to leave the country.
The expulsions stem from accusations that Moscow’s government attempted to intervene in the U.S. election to sway the vote in Donald Trump‘s favor. The CIA and FBI each made statements supporting that claim.
Russians were supposedly behind multiple hackings last year that affected Democratic Party websites, including the Democratic National Committee.
Last week, Obama promised some sort of punishment was coming for Russia — retribution that turned out to be the diplomats’ removal and a new round of economic sanctions against Moscow.
President-elect Trump, though, said recently that he would reassess the hacking allegations after he takes office Jan. 20.
