Foreign Office staff told not to say ‘hostile state’ for fear of upsetting China UK POLITICS Government officials have reportedly been told not to use the term “hostile state” by the Foreign Office in case it upsets China. The term cannot be used in documents and internal messages via email and WhatsApp between advisers, civil servants and ministers, The Times reported today. One official in another department was reportedly told by [...]
Exclusive: IOC could ban Iran from Olympics over human rights abuses latest The International Olympic Committee (IOC) stands ready to ban Iranian athletes from competing at next year’s Olympic Games in Paris if human rights abuses in the country continue, City A.M. understands. With tensions in the nation between protestors and both the government and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, athletes have been targeted by the regime. Former [...]
Hackers from Iran and Russia have ‘ruthlessly’ hit British journalists and politicians, GCHQ’s cyber centre warns Tech war Officials warn Iranian and Russian hackers have been “ruthlessly” trying to steal sensitive information from British journalists and politicians. The National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), part of GCHQ, issued a fresh alert on increased hacking attempts directed at individuals and groups, though not at members of the public. “The Russia-based SEABORGIUM (Callisto Group/TA446/COLDRIVER/TAG-53) and Iran-based [...]
Iran executions condemned by Cleverly amid Tehran crackdown on Mesa Amini protests January 7, 2023 Britain has condemned Iran’s execution of two men connected to nationwide protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini as “abhorrent”. Foreign Secretary James Cleverly urged Tehran to “end the violence against its own people”, with four men known to have been executed since demonstrations began in September. Iran’s judiciary said Mohammad Karami and Mohammad [...]
Ukraine shoots down wave of Moscow’s Iranian-made exploding Kamikaze drones January 2, 2023 Russia has deployed exploding drones in another night-time attack on Ukraine, officials said, as the Kremlin pressed its strategy of targeting civilian infrastructure to wear down resistance to its invasion. The barrage was the latest in a series of relentless year-end attacks, including one that killed three civilians on New Year’s Eve. According to the [...]
Labour calls for new sanctions on Iran over ‘repression’ of Amini protests December 28, 2022 Britain’s Labour Party has called for new sanctions to be imposed on those engaged in suppressing protests in Iran. The UK’s shadow foreign secretary, David Lammy, called for new “sanctions against individuals and organisations involved in the suppression” of the protests that have swept Iran following the death of Mahsa Amini in September. Amini, a [...]
Hostage-taking by Iran has become ‘industrialised’, senior MP tells Nazanin Zachari-Ratcliffe December 28, 2022 Hostage-taking by states has become “industrialised”, according to the chairwoman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee. Conservative MP Alicia Kearns made the claim as she appeared on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme as it was guest-edited by Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was imprisoned in Iran for six years until her release earlier this year. Zaghari-Ratcliffe also [...]
Iran seizes Greek oil tankers in escalation of Tehran’s spat with Western powers May 28, 2022 Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have seized two Greek oil tankers, after the Iranian government said it would take “punitive action” against Greece over its seizure of an Iranian oil cargo last month. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) said it had seized two Greek tankers sailing in international waters off the coast of Iran. The seizures [...]
Boris Johnson tells Iran to ‘face up to consequences’ of its drone attack August 2, 2021 Boris Johnson has called for Iran to “face up to the consequences” of its drone attack on an oil tanker that killed two people. It comes after Iran’s ambassador to the UK was today summoned to the Foreign Office in the wake of the attack, which saw a British national killed. The UK has said [...]
Second-highest Swiss diplomat in Iran found dead after fall May 4, 2021 A senior employee at the Swiss embassy in Tehran today died after falling from a high-rise building where she lived, Switzerland’s foreign ministry has confirmed. An emergency services spokesperson told Iranian news agency ISNA that the staff member was a 51-year-old woman. She was the second-highest ranked employee at the embassy and had lived on [...]