22 countries tell Iran to stop attacks ‘on our soil’
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
A burnt ambulance, among the four ambulances belonging to a Jewish community organisatio that were set on fire in an incident that the police say is being treated as an anti-Semitic hate crime, in north-west London.
PHOTO: REUTERS
SYDNEY – Twenty-two countries including the US and European nations jointly warned Iran on June 11 to stop attacking people “on our soil”.
Iran’s security services were condemned for their “deplorable” use of international and local criminal gangs for plots in Europe, North America and Australia.
“Attempts to kill, kidnap, harass, intimidate, or otherwise attack people on our soil, undermines national sovereignty and international norms. These actions must stop immediately,” the countries said in a joint statement.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ intelligence services and its foreign operations branch, the Quds Force, had engaged in “lethal plotting and malign actions” against Iranian dissidents, journalists and Jewish and Israeli communities and interests, they said.
“We stand united in our determination to protect our countries and our people against these threats. The Islamic Republic of Iran must halt these actions now.”
The countries accused Iran of being behind a campaign of attacks across Europe targeting Jewish communities, Iranian journalists and US journalists, which had been claimed by Iran-linked group Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI).
The group, whose name means The Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand, has claimed responsibility for attacks targeting Jewish communities in Britain, Belgium and the Netherlands.
HAYI reportedly said it was responsible for the stabbing of two Jewish men and a series of arson attacks on synagogues and community sites in north London over recent months.
Australia expelled Iran’s ambassador to Australia in August 2025, accusing Tehran of directing at least two anti-Semitic attacks: an arson attack on a synagogue in Melbourne and the torching of a kosher cafe in Sydney.
Canberra also withdrew the Australian ambassador to Iran and suspended operations at its embassy in Tehran.
In November, Australia designated the Revolutionary Guards as a state sponsor of terrorism, describing its alleged attacks in Australia as “unprecedented and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign nation on Australian soil”.
Iran’s foreign ministry said at the time Australia’s decision was an “insulting and unjustified act” that violated international rules and norms.
The statement was issued by Albania, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and the United States. AFP
