Prosecutors in the United Kingdom have indicted two Iranian citizens for collecting reconnaissance on Jewish targets for Iran, British justice authorities said on Wednesday.
The Metropolitan Police identified the two as Nematollah Shahsavani, 40, and Alireza Farasati, 22. They were arrested earlier this month on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service.
“They were both charged with engaging in conduct that is likely to assist a foreign intelligence service, between 9 July 2025 and 15 August 2025, contrary to section 3 of the National Security Act, 2023. The country to which the investigation relates is Iran,” according to the police statement.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Vicki Evans described the charges as “extremely serious,” and said the force will be “relentless” in its pursuit of anyone threatening the safety of the public, the statement continued.
“We fully recognise that the public — and in particular the Jewish community — will be concerned but I hope this investigation reassures them that we will not hesitate to take action if we identify there may be a threat to their safety, and will be relentless in our pursuit of those who may be responsible,” the statement quoted Evans as saying.
Shahsavani is a dual British-Iranian national residing in North Finchley, and Farasati is an Iranian national residing in Edgware, the statement said. Both of these north London neighborhoods have sizable Jewish communities.
The defendants are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, police said, adding that two other men who were arrested at the same time as part of the investigation have been released without charge.
In the Netherlands, authorities are probing whether four teenagers arrested in connection with a suspected terrorist attack on a synagogue in Rotterdam last week were working for Iran, Dutch Justice Minister David van Weel told lawmakers on Tuesday. The teenagers, aged 17-19, were likely “recruited,” he said.
Iran has long been suspected of orchestrating antisemitic attacks, including major terrorist conspiracies, worldwide and is widely believed to have helped plan the AMIA Jewish center bombing in Argentina in 1994, where 85 people died and more than 300 others were wounded.
Last year, Australia expelled Iran’s ambassador, leading to a reciprocal move, over accusations that the Islamic Republic was behind two antisemitic arson attacks in the cities of Sydney and Melbourne.
