Iran

A coalition of Iranian dissident groups assembled on Thursday outside the Metropolitan Police headquarters in London to object to what they perceive as law enforcement's inaction toward the aggressive conduct of Islamic Republic sympathizers.

The Iranian demonstrators rallied to denounce what they said was the London police's failure to promptly identify and apprehend those responsible for assaulting protesters outside the recent memorial ceremony in London for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash earlier this month along with seven others.

"The aggressive behavior exhibited by backers of the Islamic Republic and their violent clashes with dissenters undoubtedly constitute criminal offenses,” Vahid Abazari, one of the participants in the May 24 protest, told VOA. “The country purporting to uphold human rights must be held accountable for its failure to initiate investigations or apprehend the perpetrators."

Navid, who would give only one name, was injured during an assault by Islamic Republic supporters at an anti-government rally in London.

"Despite the severity of my physical injuries, my spirits are high, and once I am discharged from the hospital, I'll be ready to continue my fight against the Islamic Republic," he told VOA from his hospital bed on May 26.

At the Raisi memorial ceremony a week ago in Wembley, a faction of Islamic Republic supporters launched an attack on demonstrators. The Metropolitan Police reported four individuals sustained minor injuries during the altercation, with one person arrested on suspicion of instigating disorder and violence.

The U.S. Treasury Department announced new sanctions Friday aimed at disrupting Iran’s unmanned aerial vehicle, or UAV, program, which has been providing deadly UAVs to Russia for use in attacks against Ukraine.

In a release, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, said it was targeting an Iranian aviation executive and four commercial entities associated with the previously-sanctioned Rayan Roshd Afzar Company that have procured critical parts for the UAV program.

The targeted executive is Iran Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO) Chief Afshin Khajeh Fard, who is based in Tehran.

The department says Khajeh Fard oversees IAIO’s efforts to produce UAVs and missiles, and he has promoted the innovation of Iran’s UAV program and its reduced reliance on foreign suppliers.

Friday's sanctions mean all property and interests in property related to Khajeh Fard or the four companies in or controlled by people in the United States are frozen.

Iran has supplied thousands of Shahed kamikaze drones to Russia throughout its invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022. They have been used to exhaust Ukrainian air defenses and target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.

In the statement, Treasury Undersecretary Brian E. Nelson said, “Treasury will continue to impose costs on those who seek to procure the components Iran needs for its UAV programs and enable the shipment of these weapons to destabilizing actors around the world.”

The European Union on Friday also announced it is targeting Iran’s drone industry.