Seven Iranians appear in UK court on assault charges after embassy protest
The men, aged between 30 and 50, were charged with grievous bodily harm after two people were allegedly attacked near the embassy on Friday morning.
The defendants' lawyers told Westminster Magistrates' Court on Monday that the seven men were opponents of Iran's government and had received threats before the incident, according to UK media reports.
Prosecutor Rachel Hughes said the defendants had been taking part in a pro-royalist protest outside the Iranian embassy against the current government in Tehran.
An Iranian flag was placed on the ground and one man "knelt and kissed that flag before running off with it", Hughes told the court.
"All the defendants chased after the victim and participated in an attack over a six-minute period," she said.
The victim suffered serious injuries including broken ribs, a broken ankle and a suspected bleed on the brain and remains in hospital, Hughes told the court.
The defendants were refused bail ahead of their next court appearance at Southwark Crown Court on 21 July, media reported.
The incident happened a week after Israel launched its surprise attack on Iran, which sparked a daily exchange of missile and drone fire between the two regional rivals.
A truce in the 12-day conflict was announced early on Tuesday morning by US President Donald Trump after Tehran launched a limited missile attack on a US military base in Qatar on Monday in response to Washington's strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
However, the ceasefire reportedly faltered just hours later when Israel vowed to retaliate after saying that Iran launched missiles into its airspace in violation of the agreement.
Iran's military denied firing on Israel, according to state media, but explosions and sirens sounded across northern Israel mid-morning on Tuesday. — Euronews
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