Iran’s UK ambassador summoned to Foreign Office over embassy’s ‘unacceptable’ social media post

Iran’s ambassador to the UK has been summoned by the Foreign Office after the embassy posted what officials described as “unacceptable and provocative comments” on social media.

Seyed Ali Mousavi was summoned by Middle East minister Hamish Falconer following reports of an online message that appeared to call Iranian expatriates to martyrdom.

The Foreign Office said the minister condemned these “completely unacceptable actions”.

This diplomatic intervention followed a report on Metro detailing a message on the embassy’s Telegram channel.

The message reportedly called on the country’s diaspora in the UK to “sacrifice their lives for the homeland” and “sacrifice our lives” to “defend Iranian territory”.

He concluded: “Instead of surrendering our country to the enemy, let us all, all of us, give our lives in the war.”

The embassy’s profile on X also published a number of comments regarding US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

A post appeared on Tuesday claiming Israel is a “fake country.”

A message about the natural landmark Jashak salt dome said: “The salt dome of a real country overcomes the iron dome of fake countries.”

Iron Dome is the name given to Israel’s air defense system.

The Foreign Office said: “Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer summoned the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Kingdom in response to unacceptable and provocative comments by the Iranian embassy on social media.

“The Minister has made clear that these actions and comments are completely unacceptable and that the embassy must cease any communications that could be interpreted as encouraging violence in the UK or internationally.

“Iran’s brutal and repressive regime will continue to be called out by the UK Government for its malicious activities on UK soil, reckless attacks on our Gulf allies and violence against its own people.

“The UK Government is clear that protecting national security remains our top priority and we will take all necessary action to protect the British people.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer chaired a meeting of the crisis committee established to respond to the Iran war.

The Middle East Response Committee was considering contingency plans for the war’s impact on the economy, public services, and homeland security.

Iran’s control of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route for oil and gas tankers, has driven up prices and raised concerns about supplies of chemicals and fertilizers.

Ministers attending the meeting included Chancellor Rachel Reeves, Health Minister Wes Streeting, Transport Minister Heidi Alexander, Energy Minister Ed Miliband and Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister Darren Jones.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We are stepping up planning for all the different potential impacts on the UK economy and consumers, and this means focusing on live monitoring of stock levels and what plans are in place for supply chain disruption.”

Asked whether Mr Streeting’s presence was a sign of concern about medicines supply, the spokesman said: “We are monitoring the situation closely and have robust and well-established processes in place to manage any potential disruption to the health and social care sector to protect patients.

“This includes processes to respond to sudden market increases, including maintaining buffer stocks, sourcing alternative products where necessary, and adjusting redemption prices as necessary.

“The vast majority of products are in good condition and we will continue to work closely with industry partners to ensure the continued supply of medical products and improve resilience both now and in the long term.”

After the meeting, a Downing Street spokesman said the Chancellor had told the committee that any support for households should be “targeted” and “not have a permanent impact on interest rates”.

The spokesman said: “The Chancellor was clear that the Government needed to be responsive and responsible, drawing lessons from the previous government’s response to the 2022 energy crisis.”