FOUR men were arrested in the UK on Friday on suspicion of assisting Iran’s intelligence service by spying on locations and individuals linked to London’s Jewish community, police said.
The Metropolitan Police said the men were detained by counterterrorism officers at three separate addresses in the capital.
They include one Iranian national and three men with dual British-Iranian nationality.
Helen Flanagan, the force’s head of counterterrorism policing, 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.
Police said six other men were arrested at one of the locations on suspicion of assisting an offender and have been taken into custody.
UK police, the domestic intelligence service MI5 and members of parliament have for years warned about what they say is 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 had tracked “more than 20 potentially lethal Iran-backed plots” in the previous year.
People targeted by Iran in the UK have included Iranian dissidents and journalists.
(With input from agencies)
