Iran says ready to help UK probe after arrests of its nationals

Cecile Kohler, a 40-year-old literature teacher, and her partner Jacques Paris, in his 70s, were arrested on May 7, 2022, during a tourist trip to Iran.

Both Paris and Kohler were subject to inhumane detention conditions including forced false confessions on state TV.

Several Europeans are being held by Tehran, which France and other European nations consider a strategy of hostage-taking to gain concessions.

"I assure their families that our support is unwavering," Macron wrote on social media platform X, referring to the couple as "hostages."

According to their families, Kohler and Paris are being held in extremely difficult conditions.

Kohler's sister, Noemie, who leads the campaign for their release, said the couple are becoming increasingly desperate and losing hope.

In March, French citizen Olivier Grondeau was released from 887 days in detention in Iran.

France has denied the spying charges against its citizens and demanded their immediate release.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis told Parliament on Tuesday that the arrests marked "the first Iranian nationals arrested under the National Security Act.”

He said the Iranian state—including the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence and Security—had previously been placed on the enhanced tier of the foreign influence registration scheme.

“Anyone in the UK who works for the Iranian state must declare it or they will be committing a serious criminal offence,” he added.

The arrests, made on May 4 in London, Rochdale, Swindon, Manchester and Stockport, involved five men held under the Terrorism Act 2006 and three more under the National Security Act. Four remain in custody. Authorities believe the group was only hours away from attacking a specific location.

The Telegraph reported that at least one of the suspects is closely tied to the Islamic Republic’s leadership and comes from a prominent business family.

Jarvis said MI5 and police have responded to 20 Iran-backed plots since January 2022.

Liberal Democrat MP Lisa Smart criticized the government, saying, “Over recent years Members have been called to this Chamber to discuss plots to commit acts of terror on Britain’s streets at the hands of the Iranian regime—but consecutive Governments are yet to proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.”

“If now is not the time for proscription, when should the House expect a further update?” she asked.

Labor’s Matt Vickers recalled the Home Secretary’s previous commitment to impose “appropriately targeted proscription-style restrictions” on state-linked entities such as the IRGC.

Labor and Co-operative MP Alex Sobel protested that he “asked many times for proscription of the IRGC, as it is certainly one of the bodies in Iran that is responsible for transnational repression,” while Labor MP Jon Pearce raised concerns that UK-based charities may be used to fund terrorism.

According to the government, a review of legal options by Jonathan Hall, an independent barrister, has been completed and will be published soon. Ministers have said they will not hesitate to act based on the findings.

Meanwhile, exiled Iranian prince Reza Pahlavi called the arrests further proof of what he calls Tehran’s global threat. “The arrest of Islamic Republic agents in the UK, on the brink of another terror attack, reinforces the need to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organization,” he wrote on X.

“This regime has proven, once again, that it will not change its behavior. It continues to spread terror not only in the Middle East but to target innocent civilians across Europe and the United States.”

"The events of 2022 resulted in approximately 90,000 legal cases,” judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said on Tuesday. “The defendants and convicts in these cases came from various segments of society. Among them were, in some cases, teachers, school students, and university students.”

He said widespread prosecutions would have allowed "enemies" to exploit the unrest, so the judiciary sought assistance from non-judicial bodies.

“At that point, we sought help from seminaries, the Basij, academics, and teachers. With their presence in detention centers, the majority of those convicted in 2022 were admonished and guided,” Ejei said.

“Criminals who committed violent acts or engaged in organized operations were a separate matter,” he said. “They were dealt with legally and were not included in these measures,” he added.

The 2022 protests erupted after 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died in police custody following her arrest by Iran’s morality police over alleged hijab violations.

Human rights groups say thousands were detained, including minors, and at least eight people have been executed in connection with the protests.

The report in Payam-e Ma said that the decision, approved by President Masoud Pezeshkian, directs the Water Museum in Tehran’s historic Sa’dabad Palace complex to vacate its building so that the National Quran Museum—currently located in central Tehran—can be moved in.

The order came without public notice and was issued after the Iranian New Year holidays in early April, according to the report.

Museum workers were caught off guard as government officials suddenly removed signage and sealed the building.

Shahrokh Karimi, head of the National Water Treasure Institute that manages the museum, told the paper: “We worked hard for 30 years. It is heartbreaking to see it dismantled overnight.”

He warned that the move would erase a rare cultural institution dedicated to Iran’s water engineering and environmental heritage.

The Water Museum, established in 1996 through a government partnership between Iran’s energy ministry and cultural heritage authorities, showcased ancient irrigation techniques, historical engineering documents, and educational displays.

It has been part of a broader effort to preserve the country’s “water memory” amid growing environmental concerns.

Ahmad Mohit-Tabatabai, head of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) in Iran, criticized the relocation.

“Closing or moving a national museum is among the worst things that can happen in museology,” he said, warning that the Quran Museum’s needs are not compatible with the Water Museum’s small facilities.

In recent years, Iran has been selling off ancient heritage sites amid the country's financial crisis with historians accusing the government of abandoning the country's rich history.

Last year there was public outcry when the government announced the construction of mosques in public parks, as the Islamic Republic's agenda is seen as eroding the country's environmental heritage.

The Supreme Court had set a Monday deadline for Halkbank to file a petition appealing the October 2024 ruling by the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan, which cleared the way for the prosecution.

In a letter to the appeals court, Halkbank's lawyer Robert Cary confirmed the petition had been filed, though it was not immediately available on the Supreme Court's website.

Halkbank has pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy, accused of using money servicers and front companies in Iran, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates to circumvent US sanctions.

US prosecutors allege that Halkbank facilitated the secret transfer of $20 billion in restricted Iranian funds, converted oil revenue into gold and cash for Iranian interests, and fabricated documentation for food shipments to justify oil proceeds transfers.

The case, initiated in 2019, has strained relations between the US and Turkey, with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan denouncing it as an "unlawful, ugly" step.

However, both Erdogan and US President Donald Trump reported a productive phone call on Monday, with mutual invitations to visit their respective countries.

It is Halkbank's second appeal to the Supreme Court. In 2023, the court ruled that while the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act of 1976 shields foreign countries from civil liability, it does not extend to criminal cases.

The Supreme Court then instructed the 2nd Circuit to further examine whether common law immunity protected Halkbank, leading to the October ruling that the bank could be prosecuted.

Trump maintains his so-called maximum pressure campaign against Iran, threatening secondary sanctions and targeting those aiding sanctions evasion, while indirect nuclear talks between the US and Iran continue.