The UK has sanctioned an Iran-linked group that had claimed responsibility for attacks on Jewish locations in the UK.

The Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR) has been designated under the 2023 Iran Sanctions Regulations.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "Despite repeated warnings, Iran has continued in its attempts to undermine the safety and security of the UK through its use of criminal networks and proxy groups. 

"We are clear that we will not tolerate foreign-backed threats that target the UK or our allies. That’s why we are today going one step further and announcing sanctions on the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), otherwise known as HAYI, an organisation who have publicly claimed responsibility for 7 attacks at UK locations linked to Jewish and Israeli communities, and Persian-language media, including the antisemitic arson attack on four Hatzola ambulances in Golders Green in March.

"Today’s action follows my update to Parliament, where I set out that between March and May, there were a series of attacks across Europe and in the UK, and that sitting behind IMCR were members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Qods Force, who almost certainly directed IMCR attacks across Europe."

She continued: "This government will never stop in its commitment to protect the Jewish community, and we continue to work urgently to stamp out vile antisemitism from our streets. I have summoned the Iranian Ambassador to reiterate this at the highest levels of the Iranian system and to condemn Iran’s malign behaviour."