LONDON (AP) — Four people were injured and one arrested after clashes between supporters of Iranian authorities and anti-government protesters at an event in London mourning the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, British police said.
The Metropolitan police said officers were called on Friday evening to “reports of a disturbance” at a venue in the west London area of Wembley, where a memorial was being held for Raisi, who was killed in a helicopter crash. Police said protesters had gathered outside the venue and clashes broke out.
Islamic Republic supporters attacked an Iranian at 120 Alperton Lane, Wembley. @metpliceuk pic.twitter.com/YeETSBuClP
— Niyak Ghorbani (@GhorbaniiNiyak) May 24, 2024
Police said one person was arrested on suspicion of assault and four others were treated by paramedics with injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening or life-changing.
Police ordered those gathered to disperse and said Saturday that detectives would be examining social media footage and other evidence to see if any further crimes had been committed.
Iranian protesters have long risked their lives in the fight for freedom, and now protesters in the West face the same ongoing threats from regime thugs who are allowed safe haven in free countries.
Recent violent attacks against peaceful protesters in Iran… pic.twitter.com/gFRZBqYzy9
— Reza Pahlavi (@PahlaviReza) May 25, 2024
Raisi, a pillar of Iran’s hardline Islamic regime, was killed along with Iran’s foreign minister and six others in a plane crash in the mountains of northwestern Iran on Sunday. He was buried on Thursday at Iran’s holiest Shiite shrine.
Some Iranian expatriates welcomed Raisi’s death – London has a large Iranian community, most of whom left the country after the 1979 revolution.
