Two men in court accused of spying on London Jewish community for Iran

Two Iranian men have appeared in court accused of conducting hostile surveillance of Jewish targets in London on behalf of the Iranian Intelligence Service (IIS).

Nematollah Shahsavani, 40, and Alireza Farasati, 22, have both been charged with engaging in conduct likely to assist a foreign intelligence service, under section threeof the new National Security Act.

The prosecution alleged the men carried out reconnaissance of targets including Britain's oldest synagogue, a Jewish community centre, a campus with a school, an organisation giving security advice to the Jewish community, and the Israeli embassy and consulate.

They are also accused of trying to carry out reconnaissance on a woman who was living in Colchester at the time.

The two men were arrested 13 days ago, but most of the alleged surveillance and reconnaissance is said to have taken place last summer, in July and August 2025, with some alsoalleged in February 2026.

The men appeared in the dock at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday. They sat side by side wearing coats.

Both spoke through an interpreter only to confirm their names and dates of birth.

The Chief MagistratePaul Goldspring told them they would remain in prison until their next court appearance at the Old Bailey on 17 April.

Shahsavani came to the UK in 2009 and now has both British and Iranian nationality. He has a wife and two school-agedchildren.

Farasati came to the UK on a family reunion visa in 2021 to join his mother when he was 17. He only has Iranian nationality.