Twenty-two countries have had enough. In an unusually unified statement on Thursday, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and 18 other nations told Iran to stop attacking people on their soil.
The joint statement accused Iran's security services — specifically the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' intelligence wing and its foreign operations arm, the Quds Force — of using international and local criminal gangs to carry out attacks across Europe, North America, and Australia. The countries described the actions as "deplorable" and said they undermine national sovereignty and international norms.
"Attempts to kill, kidnap, harass, intimidate, or otherwise attack people on our soil must stop immediately," the statement read.
The countries linked Iran to a campaign of attacks against Jewish communities, Iranian journalists, and US journalists. They specifically named a group called Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (HAYI) — Arabic for "The Islamic Movement of the People of the Right Hand" — which has claimed responsibility for attacks targeting Jewish communities in the UK, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
In the UK, HAYI reportedly claimed the stabbing of two Jewish men and a series of arson attacks on synagogues and community sites in north London over recent months.
Australia has already taken strong action. In August last year, it expelled Iran's ambassador, accusing Tehran of directing at least two antisemitic attacks: an arson attack on a synagogue in Melbourne and the torching of a kosher cafe in Sydney. Canberra also withdrew its ambassador from Iran and suspended operations at its embassy in Tehran.
In November, Australia designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a state sponsor of terrorism, calling the alleged attacks "unprecedented and dangerous acts of aggression orchestrated by a foreign nation on Australian soil."
Iran's foreign ministry responded at the time, calling Australia's decision an "insulting and unjustified act" that violated international rules and norms.
The 22 countries that signed Thursday's statement are: Albania, Australia, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, and the United States.
"We stand united in our determination to protect our countries and our people against these threats. The Islamic Republic of Iran must halt these actions now."
The warning is the broadest diplomatic pushback against Iran's overseas operations in years. It signals that Western nations and their allies are moving beyond individual sanctions and expulsions to a coordinated front — publicly naming Iran's intelligence apparatus and demanding an end to what they call lethal plotting.
For now, Iran hasn't responded to Thursday's statement. But with 22 countries speaking with one voice, the message is clear: the attacks on foreign soil have to stop.