Sir Keir Starmer said attempts by Iran to destabilise British society “will not be tolerated” amid suspicion Tehran could be stirring up antisemitism.
Speaking at a roundtable in Downing Street, the prime minister said the government was investigating whether foreign states such as Iran could have been behind recent antisemitic attacks in the UK.
“We’re investigating, of course, all the possibilities and we’re clear that these actions will have consequences if that proves to be the case,” he said.
“Our message to Iran, or to any other country that might seek to foment violence, hatred or division in society, is that it will not be tolerated. That is why we passed legislation to tackle these malign threats.”
He told the meeting that although essential, security is “not enough”, as he vowed to “deal with the forces that drive this hatred in the first place”.
Sir Keir also said: “We’re clear-eyed about the fact that antisemitism does not have one source alone: Islamists, far left, far right extremism, all target Jewish communities.
“That is why this government has put in place the first co-ordinated national plan to strengthen cohesion and confront extremism in all of its forms.”
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