US and NATO Raise Alarm Over Rising Iranian Threats in Europe and North America

The US and major NATO allies, including the UK, Germany and Canada have issued a joint statement about escalating Iranian intelligence activities allegedly targetting dissidents, journalists and Jewish communities on Western soil, according to a report published by The Associated Press on Thursday. 

“We are united in our opposition to the attempts of Iranian intelligence services to kill, kidnap, and harass people in Europe and North America in clear violation of our sovereignty,” the statement read, per AP.

They accused Tehran of collaborating with international criminal organisations to carry out these operations, and said, “These services are increasingly collaborating with international criminal organisations to target journalists, dissidents, Jewish citizens, and current and former officials in Europe and North America. This is unacceptable.”

The declaration, co-signed by twelve NATO members plus Austria, stated that any foreign plots will be treated as sovereignty violations and vowed collective efforts to thwart them.

Real-World Incidents Raise Concern

While the statement did not cite specific cases, threats from Iran on European and North American soil have long been monitored by intelligence agencies. In the UK, authorities have charged three alleged Iranian operatives with surveilling journalists tied to Iranian-language media outlets. The UK’s parliamentary intelligence committee has called Iran a “wide-ranging, persistent and unpredictable threat to the UK.”

In Germany, prosecutors recently confirmed the arrest of a man in Denmark accused of collecting information on Jewish communities in Berlin for potential targeting — a move German officials connected to possible Iranian spy networks, as reported by The Associated Press.

Former Trump Officials Lose Tehran-Linked Protection

The warning comes amid controversy over the Trump administration’s decision earlier this year to remove protective security details for several former officials. During President Biden’s tenure, then administration officials including former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, national security adviser John Bolton, and Iran envoy Brian Hook had received government-funded protection due to credible threats attributed to Tehran. Those protections were repeatedly renewed until those were recently rescinded under Trump’s second administration.