The British Parliament, in a newly published report, wrote that concerns about the Iranian regime’s foreign policy are not limited to its nuclear program or its support for armed groups and “terrorist” organizations in the Middle East, but also include targeting critics, journalists, and dissidents abroad.
The UK House of Commons, in the report released on Friday, December 5, wrote that the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has played a central role in expanding the Iranian regime’s influence in the Middle East and in directing broader global operations.
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The report added that individuals targeted by the Iranian regime in the UK include dissidents, journalists, government critics, Israelis, Jews, and sectors such as government institutions, the travel industry, and universities.
The House of Commons emphasized that actions by agents linked to Iran’s regime are part of a broader pattern of transnational repression. Transnational repression typically includes harassment or intimidation of individuals abroad, with the goal of silencing them, coercing them, or extracting information.
This is not the first time the British Parliament has warned about the Iranian regime’s transnational repression.
On July 30, the Joint Committee on Human Rights of the UK Parliament issued a report calling for stronger measures to counter the growing transnational repression carried out by foreign governments on British soil.
On July 7, The Telegraph reported that the findings of a confidential report by the UK Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee confirmed that the Iranian regime’s attempts to assassinate its opponents inside the UK are still ongoing.
The Iranian regime’s use of criminal groups
The House of Commons added that the Iranian regime, in addition to using its own state institutions such as the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence, has also used criminal groups to carry out operations in the UK and elsewhere.
The report stated that the UK will impose further sanctions against the Iranian regime in the future and also referred to additional measures already announced for 2025, including police training on state-sponsored threats, strengthened enforcement of immigration laws, and funding to enhance security for synagogues.
Britain is not the only Western country concerned about threats posed by the Iranian regime to its national security.
In August, the United States and thirteen of its allies, including the UK, issued a joint statement condemning the increasing threats from the Iranian regime’s intelligence services, calling these threats “a clear violation of our national sovereignty.”
Albania, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden were among the countries that signed the statement.
