The government is facing growing cross-party demands to shut down the British operations of two Iranian state-owned banks accused of funneling cash to Tehran’s proxy militias and helping to fund the regime’s foreign policy.
Senior Labor MP and leader of the parliamentary anti-corruption task force, Ms Margaret Hodge said I It is “completely frustrating” that two financial institutions, Melli Bank and Bank Saderat, continue to operate subsidiaries in London despite being named in Western sanctions regimes.
Bank Melli is subject to U.S. sanctions for allegedly supporting the activities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), while Bank Sadrat is sanctioned by Washington for claiming to provide financial services to Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
In 2021, a U.S. federal court also held the two banks responsible for a 2015 Hamas terror attack in Israel that killed two people. A judge ruled that the financial institutions were used by the Quds Force, a branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps created to liaise with and finance proxy militias in Tehran to transfer funds to terrorist groups.
UK ministers renewed calls for action after pressure from senior Conservative backbenchers, including former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, to impose sanctions on the two banks to prevent them from operating within the UK financial system operations. Bank Saderat and Melli Bank are both state-owned banks with offices in the city center close to the Bank of England. Melli Bank was formerly a Victorian municipal library in affluent Kensington.
In a report released on Wednesday by a cross-party parliamentary anti-corruption group, lawmakers warned that Iran is using overseas financial assets to advance its interests and called for tougher enforcement of existing sanctions to deter rogue regimes.
lady margaret told I: “It is extremely frustrating that we allow British banks to allegedly funnel cash to terrorist groups such as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has launched hundreds of missiles into Israel and funds the activities of Hamas and Hezbollah. The group It must be banned but more importantly any banks involved should be held accountable.”
The government is already under cross-party pressure to follow Washington’s lead and declare the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – a powerful paramilitary force created to safeguard Iran’s Islamic revolution – a terrorist organization. Foreign Secretary David Cameron said on Wednesday he wanted to see new coordinated sanctions against Iran as G7 foreign ministers gathered in Italy to discuss the crisis triggered by Tehran’s missile attack on Israel over the weekend.
At the same time, there is growing concern about Iranian state-owned entities, including Tehran’s flagship carrier Iran Air, which have continued to operate out of London despite previous reports of links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or other members of the regime. Iran Air was contacted for comment.
Former Conservative defense secretary Sir Liam Fox this week confronted British Prime Minister Sunak over the presence of Iranian companies in the UK, saying more needed to be done to counter Tehran’s “malign intentions”.
Speaking last week, Sir Ian described the UK’s policy towards so-called affiliates of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as “ridiculous”. He added: “Iranian banks operate with impunity in the UK – one of the world’s most important financial centers – alongside the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
The two Iranian banks, both founded before the 1979 Iranian revolution, had previously stressed that they complied with all UK banking standards and financial regulations. Last night, both banks responded to requests for comment on calls for them to face sanctions.
The two financial institutions have been the target of multiple international sanctions regimes in recent years, including complaints filed by the European Union that have now expired.
Melli Bank remains subject to U.S. sanctions, which in 2018 accused it of allowing “billions of dollars’ worth” of funds to flow through accounts held by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Quds Force and to Shiite militia groups in Iraq. Transport funds.
Sadrat Bank is subject to similar U.S. restrictions because it also allegedly funnels funds to proxy militias in Tehran and provides financial services such as letters of credit to companies involved in Iran’s weapons program.
Three years ago, a U.S. judge ruled in a ruling hailed as a landmark that the two banks were part of a group that included the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which was responsible for the 2015 Hamas attacks. , the attack claimed the lives of married couple Eitam. and Naama Henkin. A federal court ruled there was enough evidence that the agencies were responsible for helping fund Hamas and therefore they were responsible for the couple’s deaths.
Experts have stressed that the UK needs to ensure that any Iranian banks operating in the UK can prove they have no links to terrorism.
Dr Alan Mendoza, executive director of the Henry Jackson Society think tank, said: “The UK has a responsibility to ensure that financial institutions operating in central London are not linked in any way to global aggression or terrorism.
“Given the long-standing concerns about the operations of Bank Melli and Bank Sadrat – as evidenced by their legal woes in the United States and their inclusion in various sanctions regimes over the past two decades – our financial regulators need to confirm that these The agency poses no threat.”
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