Commander Helen Flanagan, head of Counter Terrorism Policing London, said on Friday that the arrests were part of “a long-running investigation and part of our ongoing work to disrupt malign activity where we suspect it”.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the UK’s police and security services “are world leading” and would not hesitate to “take action to counter any threat to the UK”.
The Community Security Trust, a charity which seeks to protect Britain’s Jewish community and monitors reports of antisemitism, thanked police in a statement and added: “Security is strong across the Jewish community.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had previously condemned Iran’s actions against “partners across the region”.
“Even in the United Kingdom, the Iranian regime poses a direct threat to dissidents and to the Jewish community,” he added.