The Iranian Foreign Ministry announced new countermeasures against British military and intelligence institutions on 1 November 2026. Officials stated that these actions represent a direct response to the policies of the United Kingdom government. The ministry formally declared: "أعلنت وزارة الخارجية في بيان لها عن اتخاذ تدابير مضادة تجاه مؤسسات استخباراتية وعسكرية بريطانية، وذلك رداً على السياسات العدائية للحكومة البريطانية وتورطها في دعم العدوان الأمريكي الصهيوني ضد إيران فضلاً عن قرارها بإخضاع حرس الثورة الإسلامية لقانون التهديدات الحكومية." This decision follows the British government's move to subject the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to legislation regarding state threats. Iranian authorities cited this legislative shift as a primary factor in their decision to target the operations of British military and intelligence entities.
Designation of British Entities
Iranian authorities officially designated the British Secret Intelligence Service, commonly known as MI6, as a hostile group on 1 November 2026. This classification places the agency under specific legal restrictions within the country, following the broader diplomatic fallout between Tehran and London. Alongside this designation, the Iranian government formally identified the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force as terrorist organizations. These military branches are now subject to the same legal status under the recent countermeasures announced by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
The shift in status for these British entities follows actions taken by the United Kingdom government earlier in the year. In July 2026, British Minister of State for Security Angela Eagle announced that the government had initiated procedures to list three foreign entities as prohibited organizations under the State Threats Act 2026. These proceedings were part of an effort to expand the scope of the United Kingdom's national security framework regarding foreign state-linked activities.
The three entities targeted by the United Kingdom in July 2026 consist of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a volunteer unit of the Russian Main Intelligence Directorate, and the 'Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right'. The move to include these groups under the State Threats Act 2026 served as a precursor to the current legal tensions between the two nations. Iranian officials have since characterized the inclusion of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in this British legislative process as a primary motivation for the retaliatory designations announced against British military and intelligence bodies.
