An informed source at the Central Bank of Iran on Friday dismissed the news published in a Swiss daily on withdrawal of 250 tons of Iran's gold reserves from that country's Credit Bank.

The Central Bank official told IRNA "The news published in the Thursday edition of the Bern-based daily Der Bund, on Iran's withdrawal of 250 tons of its gold reserves, worth five billion Swiss francs, and transferring them to Tehran is totally baseless."

Der Bund had added in its report that since October 2005 Iran has withdrawn 700 tons of its gold reserves, worth 16 billion Swiss francs, from various Western monetary funds and transferred them to other unknown destinations, fearing future sanctions.