‘Physical threat’ from Iran has increased 'significantly’, watchdog finds

The threat of physical attacks by Iran on people living in the UK has increased "significantly" since 2022, Parliament's intelligence watchdog has warned.

Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee described the threat from Iran as "persistent" and "unpredictable" in a report published on Thursday.

The nine-member committee, which scrutinises the work of Britain's intelligence agencies, found the "physical threat" from Iran had "significantly increased", focused on Iranian dissidents and Jewish and Israeli interests, and was now "comparable with the threat posed by Russia".

Between the beginning of 2022 and the end of the committee's evidence-gathering in August 2023, the report found there had been at least 15 attempts at murder or kidnap against British nationals or UK residents.

The report only covers the period up to August 2023 and publication was delayed by last year's election.

The committee urged the Government to make clear to Tehran that such attempts would "constitute an attack on the UK and would receive the appropriate response".

The committee also warned that the nuclear threat from Iran had increased since the US withdrew from a key international agreement in 2018. It argued that de-escalation "must be a priority".

Committee chairman Lord Beamish said: "Iran poses a wide-ranging, persistent and unpredictable threat to the UK, UK nationals and UK interests".

Describing Iran's "high appetite for risk when conducting offensive activity", he added: "As the committee was told, Iran is there across the full spectrum of all the kinds of threats we have to be concerned with."

(PA) Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.