UK Bans IRGC After 7 Antisemitic Attacks, Expands Sabotage Powers
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jul 13
UK Bans IRGC After 7 Antisemitic Attacks, Expands Sabotage Powers
3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jul 13
Summary
Britain said an Iran-linked proxy group claimed seven attacks this year on Jewish and Israeli-linked sites and a Persian-language media outlet, triggering a wider security crackdown.
Four ambulances were torched in north London in March, and officials said IRGC Qods Force members were almost certainly directing the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right across Europe.
Life sentences could apply to sabotage carried out for the IRGC, IMCR or Russia's GRU Volunteer Corps if Parliament approves the designations this week; support offenses could bring up to 14 years.
The new powers under the National Security Act 2026 let prosecutors avoid proving a direct foreign-state link in every case, as ministers accuse Iran and Russia of using criminal proxies in Britain.
MI5 has identified at least 20 potentially lethal Iran-backed plots in Britain over the past year, and the government has pledged £250 million over three years to protect Jewish communities.
Russia's elite GRU forces are reportedly decimated. Why is the UK targeting this weakened 'volunteer corps' with proscription now?
Does proscribing Iran's state military risk turning a security threat into a direct state-on-state conflict?
After the Supreme Leader's assassination, how can this ban effectively counter a now decentralized and unpredictable IRGC network?
UK Designates Iran’s IRGC as Security Threat Under 2026 National Security Act: Implications for Civil Liberties and Foreign Policy
Overview
On July 13, 2026, the UK government officially designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a major national security threat under the new National Security (State Threats) Act 2026. This decision was based on the IRGC’s deep and wide-ranging role within Iran, its activities that go beyond a typical military force, and its involvement in serious acts both inside and outside Iran. Alongside the IRGC, other groups were also designated, and the new law gives authorities stronger powers to disrupt anyone supporting these organizations, marking a significant step in the UK’s approach to state-linked threats.