4 arrested in Britain on suspicion of spying for Iran

LONDON – Four men were arrested in Britain on March 6 on suspicion of assisting Iran’s intelligence service by spying on locations and people linked to London’s Jewish community, police said.

The men, one Iranian national and three dual British-Iranians, were arrested by counterterrorism police at three separate addresses in the UK capital, the Metropolitan police said in a statement.

The force’s head of counterterrorism policing, Ms Helen Flanagan, said the arrests were “part of a long-running investigation”.

“We understand the public may be concerned, in particular the Jewish community, and as always, I would ask them to remain vigilant and if they see or hear anything that concerns them, then to contact us,” she added.

Six other men were arrested at one of the locations on suspicion of assisting an offender and have been taken into custody, the Met said.

British police, the domestic intelligence service MI5 and members of Parliament have long warned about a growing threat to Britain from Iran, which is currently locked in a war with the United States and Israel.

In October, MI5 chief Ken McCallum said British security agencies tracked “more than 20 potentially lethal Iran-backed plots” in the previous year.

People targeted by Iran in Britain have included Iranian dissidents and journalists. AFP