IRAN is hiring petty criminals to launch attacks on Britain, a top security official has claimed.
Lord Beamish – head of parliament’s intelligence and security committee – issued the warning after an arson attack on a Jewish charity ambulance service on Monday.
He would go on to note that the people carrying out attacks for Iran were not working for the regime directly and weren’t necessarily part of organised crime groups.
Beamish said that the Iranian regime was copying the Kremlin‘s tactics in hiring criminals to launch attacks in the UK – with police now probing possible links between Tehran and the arson incident.
The Lord’s warning seemed to reference a similar arson attack in east London in 2024.
That incident saw two men prosecuted using the National Security Act after Ukrainian owned businesses were burned.
The attackers were found to have been recruited by a man who had been in contact with the Wagner Group private military organisation.
Beamish told BBC Radio 4: “In our report in 2025 we highlighted the Iranian regime, whether it be the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] or Iranian security services, do attack dissidents, people who criticise the regime, and target the Jewish community and they do that increasingly not directly, but through proxies.
“What you’re dealing with here is not necessarily just organised crime groups but also people who are just paid.”
Investigations into whether Iran could be behind Monday’s arson attack are ongoing, the Met Police said.
So far, no arrests have been made as the probe into the incident continues.
Laurence Taylor, the head of UK counter-terror policing, has since said there had been a 50 per cent increase in the number of investigations linked to hostile state activity in the UK.
Many of these incidents, he said, were suspected of being linked to Tehran.
Taylor pointed to some 20 Iranian-backed plans in the UK identified by cops since October 2024 as proof of a rising threat posed by the Ayatollah’s regime.
He said the plots included everything “from assassination to kidnap to espionage.”
It comes after Monday’s attack sparked “copycat” fears with a former top terror cop warning Iran sleeper cells have “infiltrated” the UK.
MI5 and counter-terror cops are probing links to an Iranian terror group after the four ambulances were torched in Golders Green, North London.
Police stressed the attack is not being treated as a terrorist incident at this stage, but as a hate crime.
In the aftermath of the incident, the Met Police said it was aware of an online claim from a group taking responsibility for the attack.
Enquiries to establish the accuracy of Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI)’s claim remain ongoing, the force added.
The extremist group’s name translates to “The Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right”.
It has claimed responsibility for a string of arson attacks targeting Jewish sites across Europe, including in Belgium and the Netherlands.
A report by the Israeli government found links between the group and the Iranian regime, including the IRGC.
In a social media post after the arson incident, Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia claimed it carried out the attack on Machzike Hadath synagogue in Golders Green because of its ties to Israel.
After the attack, Chris Phillips, former head of the National Counter Terrorism Office, urged the UK to be wary of “copycat incidents”.
He said: “The Iranian regime has infiltrated our country and has put sleeper cells in place here.
“It is hardly surprising when you consider how many people we have allowed in. We have got to be wary about copycat incidents.”
The horrifying incident saw terrified locals awakened by loud explosions as flames ripped through the ambulances belonging to volunteer service Hatzola.
Hatzola is a non-profit organisation that provides free emergency medical care and transport to hospitals for Jewish communities.
Six fire engines and 40 firefighters rushed to the scene, at Machzike Hadath Synagogue, at around 1.45am before alerting cops, who launched a probe.
The three suspects, seen in stark footage of the incident, remain at large – as counter-terror cops lead the investigation.
Following the terrifying incident the synagogue has been forced to up security.
Volunteers at the place of worship believe they have seen people “staking it out”, sparking major concerns among the local community.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said “it’s really important that we all stand together” after speaking with Jewish community leaders.
He said: “This is a horrific antisemitic attack. And of course, my thoughts, I think all of our thoughts, will be with those in the vicinity…
“… the residents who are understandably very concerned, and the Jewish community across the country deeply concerned.
“But antisemitism has no place in our society and it’s really important that we all stand together at a moment like this.”
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood branded the attack “so warped it defies words.”
Inquiries into the incident remain ongoing as cops desperately try to track down the three people seen in horrifying video footage of the arson attack.
Who are Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia?
HARAKAT Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia is an extremist group that has recently burst onto the scene in Europe.
The name translates as “The Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right” – and it only emerged publicly this month, raising the alarm among security services.
Experts believe the group could be linked to Iranian-backed terror networks, although that has not been officially confirmed.
The group has already claimed responsibility for a string of explosions and arson attacks targeting Jewish sites across Europe, including in Belgium and the Netherlands.
In recent days, the outfit has claimed responsibility for a wave of attacks across Europe designed to spread fear.
These include explosions and arson strikes on Jewish buildings in Belgium and the Netherlands between March 9 and March 14.
A synagogue in Liège was rocked by a blast described as an “extremely violent act of antisemitism”, while in Amsterdam an explosion damaged the country’s only Orthodox Jewish school.
Another blast outside a synagogue in Rotterdam sparked a fire and caused damage to the building, with several suspects arrested by police.
Its online messages show it is openly hostile towards Jewish communities and supportive of attacks on targets linked to Israel.
Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia spreads its propaganda through encrypted apps such as Telegram, where it posts claims and threats in multiple languages.
