Britain Bans Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that under the bill to be presented to Parliament this week, “anyone found to have supported or assisted these groups will face a prison sentence of up to 14 years.”

The list of banned groups will also include the Russian military intelligence unit “Volkhov Volunteers” and the “Islamic Right-Wing Movement,” a group linked to Iran that claimed responsibility for attacks targeting Jewish interests in London.

In a statement, the Home Office said, “This step will enhance the government’s ability to counter threats linked to foreign states, including espionage, foreign interference in our democracy, sabotage, and physical assaults.”

The announcement comes after the British capital suffered several anti-Semitic attacks earlier this year, including a series of deliberate fires targeting synagogues, ambulances, and other Jewish sites.

Last month, 22 countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, and several European nations, accused the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its external operations branch, the Quds Force, of plotting to target Iranian dissidents, journalists, and members of Jewish communities.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said, “Iran and Russia are using proxies and thugs to carry out their dirty deeds on our soil. I have swiftly designated three groups so that their operatives can be prosecuted and locked up.”