This intervention is part of a recent increase in arrests linked to extremist activities in the British capital.
London’s Metropolitan Police announced on Friday the arrest of another Iranian national, a 31-year-old man, as part of an ongoing terrorism investigation. The arrest, carried out in northwest London under Section 27 of the National Security Act 2023, marks the latest in a series of recent counterterrorism operations in the British capital.
Last Saturday, three other Iranian nationals, aged 39, 44, and 55, were also arrested in the same operation. Police confirmed that these arrests are not linked to the recent detention of five Iranians suspected of plotting an attack against the Israeli Embassy in London.
Iran’s government has categorically rejected any involvement in the alleged embassy plot, calling the accusations “baseless and undocumented.” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi voiced concern over the surge in arrests of Iranian citizens in the United Kingdom, stating on social media platform X that Iran is prepared to cooperate if “credible allegations of misconduct” are presented.
“We urge the UK to uphold the rights of our citizens and ensure due process,” Araqchi wrote.
Alireza Yousefi, director general for Western Europe at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, added that “the unpleasant habit of some British officials of repeating baseless accusations undoubtedly harms bilateral relations and deepens the historic distrust of Iranians toward the British government.” He called for immediate clarification regarding the reasons for the arrests.
The UK recently added Iran to its Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS), a legal mechanism allowing the government to act against activities deemed “covert, deceptive, or harmful” to national interests.
In October 2023, MI5 director Ken McCallum revealed that British security services had thwarted 20 “potentially lethal” Iran-linked plots since 2022, many targeting Iranian dissidents in the UK. In March 2024, Pouria Zeraati, a Persian-language TV host known for criticizing the Iranian regime, was stabbed outside his London home.
Authorities have not yet disclosed specific charges or details of the current investigations, which unfold amid mounting diplomatic tensions between the UK and Iran, fueled by cross-accusations, attacks on exiled Iranian opposition figures, and new legal measures against alleged foreign interference.
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