UK announces sanctions on Iranian-backed crime gang targeting Israelis in Europe
Foreign Secretary David Lammy announces sanctions against Foxtrot Network and its leader Rawa Majid
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
The UK has announced sanctions against a Swedish based gang and its leader accused of carrying out attacks on Israelis and Jews across Europe on behalf of the government of Iran.
In a move confirmed by Foreign Secretary David Lammy, the government has imposed sanctions against the notorious criminal Foxtrot Network and its leader Rawa Majid.
Lammy said the UK “will not tolerate these threats” and “will continue to hold the Iranian regime and criminals acting on its behalf to account.”
Since the start of 2022, the UK has responded to more than 20 Iran-backed plots, presenting potentially lethal threats to British citizens and UK residents, and the latest designations were made under the 2023 Iran Sanctions Regulations.
In January 2024, the Foxtrot Network was accused of orchestrating an attack on the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden, on behalf of the Government of Iran.
The Iranian embassy in Sweden called the accusations “fake and propagandistic.”
One of the most notorious criminal gangs based in Sweden, it has conducted shootings, contract killings, assaults, and other forms of violence.
The group is also one of the most prominent drug trafficking organisations in the region with a presence in other European countries.
Majid has specifically cooperated with the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS).
Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad has also claimed that documents showed Majid — a Swedish-Turkish dual national nicknamed the “Kurdish Fox” — had previously been arrested in Iran and ordered to cooperate with the Iranian regime or go to jail.
MOIS has been previously sanctioned by the U.S. Department of State under multiple authorities.
In March the US announced its own sanctions against Foxtrot and its leader.
The Foreign Secretary added:”The Iranian regime uses criminal gangs across the world to threaten people. The UK has targeted this criminal network and its leader, Rawa Majid, due to their involvement in violence against Jewish and Israeli targets in Europe on behalf of the Iranian regime. The UK will not tolerate these threats.
“This forms part of the UK Government’s ongoing response to Iranian hostilities in Europe.
“Last month, we announced that Iran will be placed on the enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme (FIRS) and to date, the UK has sanctioned more than 450 Iranian individuals and entities, in response to the regime’s human rights violations, nuclear weapons programme and malign influence internationally.”
The sanctions include an asset freeze preventing any UK citizen, or any business in the UK, from dealing with any funds or economic resources which are owned, held or controlled by the Foxtrot Network.
A travel ban has also been put in place leaving anyone connected to the gang unable to enter the UK or remain living here.
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