Iran Believed To Be Agitating British Pro-Hamas Protesters
Iranian agents are stirring up unrest in the UK through Gaza protests, according to a report by the British newspaper The Times.
Iranian agents are stirring up unrest in the UK through Gaza protests, according to a report by the British newspaper The Times.
There is direct involvement of the Iranian regime through the physical presence of operatives at protests as well as through disinformation campaigns conducted online.
A third consecutive weekend of pro-Palestinian protests is being policed in London by more than 1,000 officers. Saturday's rally brought out a 100,000 crowd.
The report about Iranian involvement in protests in Britain follows repeated calls for the UK to ban Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Currently, the British government is under increasing pressure to intensify its campaign against Iran.
During one of the pro-Palestinian rallies in London a British-Iranian activist who has staged a sit-in protest outside Westminster calling for the IRGC to be proscribed as a terrorist organization, was assaulted by pro-Palestinian demonstrators. Vahid Beheshti, 46, said a Hamas supporter threatened to cut his throat.
While a proscription could still happen, it is unlikely that any change will occur soon, according to The Times. Banning the IRGC would lead to "the loss of intelligence-gathering capabilities" since while the United States and Canada have both banned the IRGC, they are reportedly dependent on Britain's influence in Tehran.
However, the British government has increased sanctions, since Mahsa Amini's death in September 2022, as a response to human rights violations committed by the regime's IRGC forces and specifically pledged to enhance protection for Iranian journalists based in the UK in response to the suspension of Iran International's UK operations, which was based on advice from the London Metropolitan Police, following continued threats to its employees.
