22 Nations Accuse Iran Of Using Gangs For Killings Abroad

Twenty-two countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and several major European nations, have jointly condemned Iran for allegedly using criminal gangs to carry out killings, kidnappings and harassment campaigns targeting dissidents, journalists and Jewish communities abroad.

In a joint statement, the countries denounced what they described as “lethal plotting” and other “malign actions” by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its affiliated groups, accusing Iranian security services of increasingly collaborating with international criminal organisations to target journalists, dissidents, Jewish citizens, and current and former officials across Europe and North America.

The governments also raised concern over a recent wave of attacks in Europe targeting Jewish communities, Iranian journalists and US interests, claimed by a previously unknown group calling itself Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI), which the statement says operates through intermediaries linked to wider networks.

HAYI, whose name translates as The Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right, was not known before the attacks began.

The statement described it as “deplorable” that the IRGC allegedly uses international and local criminal gangs to conduct operations, citing incidents in Sweden, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.

It further alleged that Iran has leveraged organised criminal groups, including Foxtrot, Hell’s Angels and Rumba, to carry out attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets across Europe.

In Sweden, an unexploded grenade was discovered at the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm. Swedish and Israeli intelligence later linked the attack to the Foxtrot gang, allegedly acting on Iran’s instructions.

Britain’s domestic intelligence service MI5 has also warned of a growing Iranian threat, saying it disrupted more than 20 potentially lethal Iran-linked plots in the UK between January and October 2025.

The Iranian embassy in London rejected the allegations, saying they “lack credible evidence” and appear to serve “narrow political agendas.”

The statement was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, Albania, Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portugal and Sweden.

It added that “attempts to kill, kidnap, harass, intimidate, or otherwise attack people on our soil undermine national sovereignty and international norms,” stressing that such actions must stop immediately.

The joint condemnation comes amid escalating tensions between Iran and Western nations, with both Iran and the United States reportedly exchanging strikes for a second consecutive day on Wednesday, further straining an already fragile ceasefire reached in April.