Iran Embassy London flag torn down, replaced with pre-1979 symbol
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An anti-regime protester climbed onto the balcony of the Iranian Embassy in London on Friday and tore down the Islamic Republic flag, replacing it with Iran’s pre-1979 “Lion and Sun” emblem, video shows.
After climbing outside the embassy building in Kensington, the demonstrator ripped down the regime’s flag and removed the historical symbol associated with the Iranian monarchy before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, to the cheers of a large crowd of anti-regime protesters.
The Metropolitan Police said officers responded to the scene and arrested two men, one for aggravated trespass and assault on an emergency worker, and the other for aggravated trespass. Police said they were also looking for another trespasser. It was not immediately clear whether the protester who took down the flag was among those arrested.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Iranian Embassy in London for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
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A protester stands on the balcony of the Iranian Embassy in London after replacing the Islamic Republic flag with Iran’s pre-1979 “Lion and Sun” emblem during a demonstration. Video and images of the incident spread on social media. (Pegah Janbakhsh via Storyful)
The embassy protest comes as Iran faces its most significant wave of unrest in recent years. President Trump warned the regime that the United States would protect protesters if necessary.
British-Iranian journalist Potkin Azarmehr said the current unrest contrasts sharply with Iran’s 2009 Green Movement, when protesters openly questioned whether the Obama administration supported them.
“Obama said protesters in Iran were saying, ‘Obama, are you with us or are you with them?'” Azarmehr told Fox News Digital. What a contrast to the period when he chanted slogans like “
“Any international support, whether at the grassroots or government level, is encouraging,” he said.
He said global attention was important for protesters on the ground but questioned the lack of visible demonstrations by Western activist groups.
NetBlocks CEO Alp Toker said the internet blackout in Iran activated the central kill switch to hide alleged crimes as protests grew, with connectivity falling below 2%. (Sadegh Nikgostar ATPImages/Getty Images)
“The question is: Where are the Western activist elite protesters? Why aren’t they protesting? Are they on the side of the ayatollahs? An archaic religious apartheid?”
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The demonstrations, which started on December 28 due to economic difficulties, have since spread across the country and turned into a direct challenge to Iran’s religious leaders. Protests in solidarity with Iranian demonstrators have also emerged in other major European cities, including Paris and Berlin. A protest was also held in front of the White House in Washington DC.
As of Saturday, at least 72 people have been killed and more than 2,300 detained in Iran-based protests, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
Some protests included slogans supporting Iran’s former ruler, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who died in 1980. His son, Reza Pahlavi, openly called for the demonstrations to continue. The Iranian regime also cut off internet access throughout the country.
At a press conference in Washington, D.C. on Friday, Trump said Iran was facing increasing pressure.
“Iran is in big trouble,” Trump said. “It seems to me that people are taking over some cities that no one really thought was possible until a few weeks ago. We’re monitoring the situation very carefully.”
Trump warned that the United States would respond strongly if the regime resorted to mass violence.
A vehicle burned during protests in Tehran, Iran, on January 8, 2026. Nationwide protests began in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar in late December over worsening economic conditions, then spread to universities and other cities, with slogans shifting from economic grievances to political and anti-government demands. (Khosh Iran/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
“We’re going to hit them hard where it hurts,” Trump said. “And that doesn’t mean dropping the boots to the ground, but hitting very, very hard where it hurts.”
According to the Associated Press, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei signaled the impending crackdown despite warnings from the United States.
Tehran stepped up its threats on Saturday, with Iran’s top prosecutor, Mohammad Movahedi Azad, warning that anyone participating in the protests would be considered an “enemy of God,” a charge that carries the death penalty. In the statement made by Iranian state television, it was stated that even “those who aid the rebels” could be charged.
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The statement said, “Prosecutors should prepare the ground for a careful and prompt trial and decisive confrontation by preparing indictments against those who want to establish foreign domination over the country by betraying the nation and creating insecurity.”
“Trials must be conducted without tolerance, mercy or tolerance.”
Fox News’ Efrat Lachter, Greg Norman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
