Seven Iranians charged with assault in UK after embassy protest clash
The men, aged between 30 and 50, were charged with grievous bodily harm after two people were allegedly attacked near the embassy on Friday morning.
The defendants' lawyers told Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday that the seven men were opponents of Iran's government and had received threats before the incident, according to UK media reports.
Prosecutor Rachel Hughes said the defendants had been taking part in a pro-royalist protest outside the Iranian embassy against the current government in Tehran.
An Iranian flag was placed on the ground and one man "knelt and kissed that flag before running off with it", Hughes told the court.
"All the defendants chased after the victim and participated in an attack over a six-minute period," she said.
The victim suffered serious injuries including broken ribs, a broken ankle and a suspected bleed on the brain and remains in hospital, Hughes told the court.
The defendants were refused bail ahead of their next court appearance at Southwark Crown Court on 21 July, media reported.
The incident happened a week after Israel launched its surprise attack on Iran, which sparked a daily exchange of missile and drone fire between the two regional rivals.
A truce in the 12-day conflict was announced early on Tuesday morning by US President Donald Trump after Tehran launched a limited missile attack on a US military base in Qatar on Monday in response to Washington's strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
However, the ceasefire reportedly faltered just hours later when Israel vowed to retaliate after saying that Iran launched missiles into its airspace in violation of the agreement.
Iran's military denied firing on Israel, according to state media, but explosions and sirens sounded across northern Israel mid-morning on Tuesday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
8 hours ago
- France 24
US imposes sanctions on shipping empire tied to Iranian leaders
The Treasury Department said the sanctions were being imposed on companies and vessels operated by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani, who has been subject to US sanctions since 2020. It said Hossein operates a fleet of more than 50 tankers and container ships that transport Iranian and Russian oil and petroleum products, generating tens of billions of dollars in profit. "The Shamkhani family's shipping empire highlights how the Iranian regime elites leverage their positions to accrue massive wealth and fund the regime's dangerous behavior," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. The Treasury Department said more than 115 individuals, corporate entities and vessels were being sanctioned, including companies based in Hong Kong, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and other countries. "The over 115 sanctions issued today are the largest to-date since the Trump Administration implemented our campaign of maximum pressure on Iran," Bessent said. The Treasury Department said Hossein's network "comprises a vast fleet of vessels, ship management firms, and front companies... that launder billions in profits from global sales of Iranian and Russian crude oil and other petroleum products, most often to buyers in China." The State Department said separately that it was imposing sanctions on 20 entities, including companies in India, Indonesia, Turkey and the UAE, for their involvement in the trade of Iranian petroleum, and 10 vessels. The sanctions are being imposed more than a month after the United States attacked Iran's nuclear program, hitting a uranium enrichment facility at Fordo, south of Tehran, as well as nuclear sites in Isfahan and Natanz. State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the sanctions are intended to "disrupt the Iranian regime's ability to fund its destabilizing activities, including its nuclear program, support for terrorist groups, and oppression of its own people." "As President (Donald) Trump has said, any country or person who chooses to purchase Iranian oil or petrochemicals exposes themselves to the risk of US sanctions and will not be allowed to conduct business with the United States," Bruce said. She said the United States will continue to put "maximum pressure" on Tehran until it "accepts a deal that advances regional peace and stability and in which Iran forgoes all aspirations of a nuclear weapon."
LeMonde
21 hours ago
- LeMonde
In Iran, the government steps up repression as executions surge
The deaths of Mehdi Hassani and Behrouz Ehsani, who were hanged by the Iranian authorities on Friday, July 25, added two more names to the list of those sentenced and executed in Iran. Hassani, aged 48, was arrested on September 11, 2022; Ehsani, aged 69, was arrested on December 6, 2022. Both men were sentenced to death in January for "armed rebellion," "enmity against God" and "corruption on Earth," charges linked to their alleged membership in the opposition group People's Mujahedin (MEK). Their sentences were handed down after a trial lasting five minutes, during which they were not allowed to defend themselves. They had been denied access to their lawyers for two years. These two executions brought the total number of people killed in the first half of the year to at least 612 men and women, according to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. That is twice as many as during the same period in 2024 (with 297 executions). At least 48 people are currently being held on death row in Iran, according to the UN.
Euronews
a day ago
- Euronews
US and China prepare to extend tariff pause after Stockholm talks
The United States and China have agreed to work on extending a deadline for new tariffs on each other after two days of trade talks in Stockholm concluded on Tuesday, according to Beijing's lead negotiator. The US side said the extension was discussed, but still required approval from President Donald Trump. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent claimed "our Chinese counterparts have jumped the gun a little" when announcing a pause, although he described the talks as 'very fulsome two days with the Chinese delegation". China said the two sides had 'in-depth, candid and constructive' discussions and agreed to work on extending a pause in tariffs beyond a 12 August deadline for a trade deal for another 90 days. 'A stable, healthy and sustainable China-US economic and trade relationship serves not only the two countries' respective development goals but also contributes to global economic growth and stability,' said China's Vice Premier He Lifeng, who led the Chinese side, according to a statement from China's Ministry of Commerce. He did not say how the extension would work. Bessent added that the two sides touched on US concerns over China's purchase of Iranian oil, supply of dual-use tech to Russia that could be used on the battlefield, and the manufacturing of goods at a rate beyond what is sustained by global demand. 'We just need to de-risk with certain, strategic industries, whether it's the rare earths, semiconductors, medicines, and we talked about what we could do together to get into balance within the relationship,' Bessent said. He stressed that the US seeks to restore domestic manufacturing, secure purchase agreements of US agricultural and energy products, and reduce trade deficits. Meeting in the Swedish capital The latest round of talks opened Monday in Stockholm to try to break a logjam over tariffs that have skewed the pivotal commercial ties between the world's two largest economies. The two sides previously met in Geneva and London to address specific issues — triple-digit tariffs that amounted to a trade embargo and export controls on critical products — China's chokehold on rare earth magnets, and US restrictions on semiconductors. Monday's discussions lasted nearly five hours behind closed doors at the office of Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. Before the talks resumed Tuesday, Kristersson met with Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer over breakfast. A possible Trump-Xi meeting The talks in Stockholm unfolded as President Donald Trump is mulling plans to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, a summit that could be a crucial step toward locking in any major agreements between their two countries. 'I would say before the end of the year,' Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Tuesday. On his Truth Social media platform, Trump insisted late Monday that he was not 'seeking' a summit with Xi, but may go to China at the Chinese leader's invitation, 'which has been extended". "Otherwise, no interest!' he added. Bessent told reporters the summit was not discussed in Stockholm but that they did talk about 'the desire of the two presidents for the trade team and the Treasury team to have trade negotiations with our Chinese counterparts". Greer said the American team would head back to Washington and 'talk to the president about' the extension of the August deadline and see 'whether that's something that he wants to do". Striking tariff deals The US has struck deals over tariffs with some of its key trading partners — including Britain, Japan and the European Union — since Trump announced earlier in July elevated tariff rates against dozens of countries. China remains perhaps the biggest challenge. 'The Chinese have been very pragmatic,' Greer said in comments posted on social media by his office late Monday. 'We have tensions now, but the fact that we are regularly meeting with them to address these issues gives us a good footing for these negotiations.' Many analysts had expected that the Stockholm talks would result in an extension of current tariff levels, which are far lower than the triple-digit percentage rates proposed as the US-China tariff tiff reached a crescendo in April, sending world markets into a temporary tailspin. The two sides deescalated tensions during bilateral talks in Geneva in May and agreed to a 90-day pause on sky-high tariffs — which ends 12 August. The US duties currently stand at 30% on Chinese goods, while China is placing a 10% tariff on US products. The long view While China has offered few specifics of its goals in the Stockholm talks, Bessent has suggested that the situation has stabilised to the point that Beijing and Washington can start looking toward longer-term balance between their economies. Since China vaulted into the global trading system more than two decades ago, Washington has sought to press Beijing to encourage more consumption at home and offer greater market access to foreign, including American-made goods. Wendy Cutler, a former US trade negotiator and now vice president at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said Trump's team would today face challenges from 'a large and confident partner that is more than willing to retaliate against US interests". Rollover of tariff rates 'should be the easy part', she said, warning that Beijing has learned lessons since the first Trump administration and 'will not buy into a one-sided deal this time around". Goodbye Stockholm Bessent said the 'overall tone of the meetings was very constructive" while Li said the two sides agreed in Stockholm to keep close contact and to 'communicate with each other in a timely manner on trade and economic issues". On Monday, police cordoned off a security zone along Stockholm's vast waterfront as curious tourists and locals sought a glimpse of the top-tier officials through a phalanx of TV news cameras lined up behind metal barriers. Flagpoles at the prime minister's office were festooned with the American and Chinese flags.
