Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free

The UK, the US and a dozen other western nations on Thursday condemned what they said was the growing threat from Iranian intelligence agents seeking to kill, kidnap and harass citizens in their territories.

In a joint statement, they said those being targeted included current and former officials in Europe and North America, dissidents, Jewish citizens and journalists, adding that the Iranian agents were increasingly collaborating with criminal organisations.

“We consider these types of attacks, regardless of the target, as violations of our sovereignty,” the states, which included France, Germany and Canada, said.

“We are committed to working together to prevent these actions from happening and we call on the Iranian authorities to immediately put an end to such illegal activities in our respective territories.”

The warning about the alleged plots comes amid a period of heightened tensions between the west and Iran, which escalated further after Israel launched a 12-day war against the Islamic republic last month. The US briefly joined Israel’s assault, bombing Iran’s main nuclear facilities.

The US and its European allies have been locked in a long-running stand-off with Iran over its nuclear programme and have been angered by Tehran’s decision to sell armed drones to Moscow, which Russia has used in its war with Ukraine.

The US Department of Homeland Security said in a threat assessment in June that the war with Iran was “causing a heightened threat environment in the United States”.

It said the Islamic republic “has a long-standing commitment to target US government officials it views as responsible for the death of an Iranian military commander killed in January 2020”.

That was a reference to the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, Iran’s most powerful commander, which was ordered by US President Donald Trump during his first term. 

European states have also increased their warnings about Iranian agents targeting citizens in their countries.

British counterterrorism police in May arrested eight men, including seven Iranians, in relation to two separate alleged plots. People briefed on the arrests said the Israeli embassy in London was one of the targets.

At the time, Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran “categorically” rejected any involvement in an alleged plot against the Israeli embassy in London, adding that it had “not been informed of any allegations via proper diplomatic channels”. 

Sir Ken McCallum, head of Britain’s MI5 domestic security service, said in October that his agents and police had tackled 20 “potentially lethal” plots backed by Iran since 2022. The majority were aimed at dissident Iranians living in Britain, he added.