125 cross-party British parliamentarians have today written to
Prime Minister urging him to proscribe Iran’s
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terror organisation –
including over 90 Conservatives. The large expression of
parliamentary support for proscription comes from all major
political parties, both Houses of Parliament, and includes more
than a dozen former Cabinet members.
The letter, sent by the All-Party Britain-Israel Parliamentary
Group, expresses support for Vahid Beheshti, a British-Iranian
who has been on hunger strike outside the Foreign, Commonwealth
and Development Office for 56 days as he calls for the IRGC to be
banned. A group of cross-party parliamentarians have this
afternoon visited Mr Beheshti to present him with the letter and
express solidarity.
The parliamentarians assert that Mr Beheshti has “shown
remarkable dignity and strength throughout his protest and has
widespread support from parliamentarians who share his sense of
urgency in the need to proscribe the IRGC as a terror
organisation”.
Responding to news of the letter, Mr Beheshti said: “The letter
is incredible. I really thank you. I am very humble for all of
the support that we get. It is not an individual act – it is
group work that we all are doing and calling for proscription.
This letter shows that it is not just my cause - this is the
demand of many millions of people. Anyone who’s heart beats for
humanity. This shows that persistence and determination always
pays off. I will continue this hunger strike with this great
support of British politicians at this very crucial moment”.
The IRGC is condemned for “systematically destabilising the
Middle East” and the British parliamentarians warn that the
“threat is no longer thousands of miles away because the IRGC is
now openly operating on our own shores”.
The letter identifies a “growing list of activities” the IRGC has
carried out in the UK which “will be of grave concern to many
across our country”. In recent weeks, it has been revealed by the
UK’s MI5 security agency and Security Minister that the IRGC has been behind 15 foiled kidnap and
assassination plots, collection of intelligence on British-Jewish
targets using UK-based criminal gangs, violent intimidation of
journalists operating in the UK, and radicalisation at British
Islamic centres.
The signatories argue that the Government must follow its earlier
decisions to proscribe Hamas and Hezbollah as terror groups by
going “after the parent organisation” because it is the “primary
financier, supplier, and trainer of these dangerous groups”.
The letter welcomes comments in December 2022 made by Prime
Minister Sunak at Conservative Friends of Israel’s Annual
Business Lunch that he and his Home Secretary would “utilise the full
range of tools” at their disposal to combat the IRGC.
Earlier this year, British MPs unanimously endorsed a motion
calling for proscription following a debate secured by CFI
Officer .
Last week, 130 Democrat and Republican members of the U.S.
Congress wrote to the European Union expressing their
“disappointment” at its “hesitation” to proscribe the IRGC.
