Fourteen Western countries have strongly condemned the increase in harassment activities such as assassination and kidnapping by Iranian intelligence agencies on their territory.
On the 30th (local time), these countries stated in a joint statement, "Iranian intelligence agents are targeting dissidents, Jewish citizens, journalists, and senior officials, and their activities are becoming increasingly organized and aggressive. We regard these attempts as a clear violation of sovereignty and urge the Iranian authorities to immediately cease these illegal actions."
In particular, they emphasized that Iranian intelligence agencies are planning attacks in cooperation with criminal organizations, adding, "We will take preemptive measures through a joint response."
The countries that participated in the statement include ▲ the United States ▲ the United Kingdom ▲ Albania ▲ Austria ▲ Belgium ▲ Canada ▲ the Czech Republic ▲ Denmark ▲ Finland ▲ France ▲ Germany ▲ the Netherlands ▲ Spain ▲ Sweden, totaling 14 countries.
According to a report by the Financial Times (FT), these warnings came amidst rising tensions between the Middle East and the West. In June, Israel conducted a major military operation targeting Iran for 12 days, and the United States also took part, bombing three key Iranian nuclear facilities and engaging in military conflict. Iran has faced criticism for indirectly intervening in the Ukraine war by selling armed drones to Russia.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security analyzed in a threat assessment report released in June that "conflicts with Iran are raising the threat level within the United States."
The report noted that Iran is currently targeting high-ranking American officials in retaliation for the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, who was killed in January 2020 under the orders of former President Donald Trump.
European countries are also on alert regarding Iran. In May, British police arrested eight suspects in London on charges of plotting terrorism, seven of whom were Iranian nationals targeting the Israeli embassy in London.
In fact, British security authorities are monitoring the Iranian threat very seriously. Ken McCullum, director of the British Domestic Intelligence Service, stated in October, "Since 2022, we have thwarted over 20 terror attempts linked to Iran, the majority of which targeted anti-regime Iranians in the UK."
However, Iran maintains that it has no involvement in the series of terror controversies. Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, dismissed the allegations, stating, "Iran completely denies any involvement and has received no explanations through appropriate diplomatic channels."