Two men deny Iran-backed surveillance of Jewish and Israeli sites in London
Targets allegedly included the Israeli embassy and consulate, a woman said to be of interest to Iran, a college, and Britain's oldest synagogue.
Two men, Nematollah Shahsavani and Alireza Farasati, stood before London's Old Bailey court on Friday, pleading not guilty to charges of surveilling the Israeli Embassy and other Israeli and Jewish targets on behalf of Iran. The 41-year-old Iranian-British national and the 22-year-old Iranian national appeared at the Old Bailey and denied a single charge under the National Security Act.
They face allegations of collecting information and conducting reconnaissance on targets including the Israeli Embassy, the Israeli Consulate, and the Bevis Marks Synagogue in July and August 2025. The court heard that one alleged target was also an unnamed individual of intelligence interest to Iran. The judge, Bobbie Cheema-Grubb, remanded both suspects in custody, with their next court appearance scheduled for February.
Their trial is set to commence in April. Iran has consistently denied any involvement in hostile activities in Britain, a claim authorities assert has intensified since the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023, leading to the subsequent war in Gaza.
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