News and Views 12th March 2026

War in Middle East

What is the legality of the US and Israeli attacks on Iran? There has been much debate in the mainstream and social media in the past week or two as to both the morality and wisdom of the operations carried out by Israel and the United States in the Middle East, as well as their legality, owing to a lack of “imminent threat” (e.g., read here, here and here). Focusing purely on the legality of the attacks, the World Council of Churches is one of many groups that has called on governments to hold Israel accountable for violations of international law. But Natasha Hausdorff, British barrister, international law specialist, and legal director of advocacy group, UK Lawyers for Israel, has made it clear that while there is an avenue for the lawful use of force via the mechanisms of the UN, “it's absolutely farcical to suggest that one would be required to obtain UN approval for the exercise of one's self-defence. Likewise, it is farcical that one would require any other form of authority to respond to Iranian aggression which we have seen both against Israel and against the US for decades in the context of an ongoing armed conflict (via) uses of force by the Iranian regime against Israel and Israeli interests for decades, both indirectly via Iranian proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah; proxies also in Iraq and in Syria, and then laterally direct strikes - ballistic missiles and drone strikes - on Israeli civilian communities.”

Iran and the UK

With events unfolding rapidly in the Middle East, and with consequential knock-on effects in many nations, both politically and economically, questions are being asked about the UK’s role.

Pro-Khamenei groups operating within Britain's universities. Pro-Khamenei groups are said to be operating within 27 British universities where students and staff are holding protests and sharing tributes to mourn the death of Iran's Supreme Leader, whom they depict as a “martyr”. The tributes to one of the world's most brutal dictators have been led by the universities' Ahlul-Bayt Islamic societies (ABSoc). Last week, ABSoc members at the University of Manchester took part in a candlelit vigil, which saw tense clashes between them and anti-Iranian-regime protesters, while at a vigil in Birmingham, supporters of the Iranian regime burnt an Israeli flag and chanted “death to the IDF”. Meanwhile, the annual pro-Iran Al-Quds Day march due to take place in central London on Sunday (15^th March) was cancelled by the government will now take place as a 'static protest', as Shabana Mahmood confirmed she was powerless to block it. Read also.
Stolen Islamic regime funds are flowing through the UK. One reason given for the UK government continuing to fail to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist organisation, even after the European Union has done so, is the fact that Islamic regime-linked wealth has become deeply embedded inside the British financial and property system. London’s real estate market has become one of the world’s most attractive destinations for opaque foreign capital, with roughly 90% of foreign-owned property in London held through obscure offshore shell companies, many of which are said to be owned by members of the Iranian regime.
Iran's new Ayatollah owns luxury London properties. Notably, Iran's new camera-shy Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei owns properties in Kensington, west London, worth over £50million, located a stone's throw from Kensington Palace, the official residence of the Prince and Princess of Wales, and just metres from the Israeli Embassy – thus creating a “serious security breach”. Mojtaba Khamenei – a key figure inside Iran’s own financial and political network – also has links to a broader web of London properties through intermediaries and shell companies, estimated in the hundreds of millions.
UK condemns Iran in speeches and sanctions lists but its money is still welcome. Members of the Islamic Republic’s ruling families have also established personal and professional footholds in the UK, with relatives of senior Iranian officials able to live, work, and conduct business in Western countries, including Britain. American-Israeli journalist and founder of the Iran Israel Alliance, Emily Schrader, concludes that “Britain cannot claim to confront the Iranian regime while simultaneously serving as a repository for its money. If the UK is serious about countering Tehran’s destabilizing activities, it must begin by addressing the regime-linked financial networks operating within its own borders.”

Islamophobia

Labour issues new ‘anti-Muslim hostility’ definition and Islamophobia ‘tsar’. The Government has announced the creation of an official definition of “anti-Muslim hostility” and the country's first ‘tsar’ to tackle it. Under the new definition, anti-Muslim hostility is defined as crimes such as violence or harassment directed at people who are either Muslim or are perceived to be, as well as “prejudicial stereotyping” to encourage hatred against them and unlawful discrimination. However, the Government said that the definition is not becoming law and does not mean that all anti-Muslim hostility would constitute a crime, agreeing that “open debate in the public interest” must be protected.
Free Speech Union launches legal action. But critics warned the new definition would still have a deeply chilling effect, shutting down legitimate debates. They question why the move is needed given that there are already laws against religiously motivated hate crimes. Convinced they will lead to a “blasphemy law by the back door”, the Free Speech Union is launching a legal challenge against the Government’s plans. Spiked’s Brendan O’Neill opined that, with the war in Iran providing a violent reminder of how widespread Islamism is in the West, we should “Forget ‘Islamophobia’ – it’s Islamism the West should be fighting.” Similarly, Andrew Gilligan, in The Spectator, called the definition “truly sinister.”
Islam rules in UK schools. Under Labour ‘Islamophobia’ plans, schools, councils and workplaces will be encouraged to monitor incidents of anti-Muslim hostility, insisting that that incidents of anti-Muslim hostility should be “accurately identified, recorded, and addressed.” Meanwhile, under guidance issued to teachers across northern England as part of a publication intended to highlight “sensitivity and awareness around faiths and beliefs”, activities as innocent as children's drawings could be considered blasphemous, while music and dance lessons could equally contravene the teachings of Islam.

Antisemitism

Incidents of antisemitism ‘jump by a third’ since outbreak of Iran war. The number of antisemitic incidents reported around the world surged by 34% since the beginning of the conflict with Iran on February 28, according to new data released by the Combat Antisemitism Movement’s (CAM) Antisemitism Research Centre (ARC). The ARC recorded 154 antisemitic incidents worldwide in the first week of the conflict, with 47.4% directly linked to the war with Iran, including incitement against Jews, conspiracy theories blaming Jews or Israel for the conflict, and explicit glorification of the Iranian regime. Examples include:

Media personality Tucker Carlson blamed the war with Iran on the Hasidic Orthodox Chabad movement.
Several New York City-based far-left groups released a statement praising Iran’s attacks against “Zionist forces and settlers.”
Demonstrators in London and other cities across the UK flew flags of the Islamic Republic and chanted “Burn, burn Tel Aviv.”
A gunman wearing clothing displaying the words “Property of Allah” and an Iranian flag design opened fire at a bar in Austin, Texas, killing 3 people. While not confirmed as motivated by Jew-hatred, the suspect, who was shot dead at the scene by police, had a history of antisemitic social media posts.
In Washington DC, a graphic public display depicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. President Donald Trump, and late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein eating the organs of children.

Other recent instances of antisemitism or staunch anti-Israel sentiment (not all in connection to the Iran war) include:

22 antisemitic occurrences have been reported in Toronto so far this year, representing roughly 63% of all reported hate-crime occurrences in the city. These include 3 shootings targeting synagogues in the city in just the past week.
Ireland has suffered nearly 150 incidents of anti-Semitism in the past six months, with 143 anti-Semitic incidents recorded between July last year and January, averaging nearly one per day. There is no government mechanism for recording anti-Semitic incidents in Ireland and only 24 per cent of the victims reported their experiences to the authorities.
There is reported to exist “institutional and legal antisemitism’ in Lithuania, including even within the country’s governing coalition.
The UK Boy Scouts has been criticised for promoting the Islamophobia Awareness Month badge without establishing equivalent recognition for antisemitism.
A 14-year-old Jewish girl was physically assaulted and threatened with death by three teenagers in the Paris suburb of Sarcelles on Friday, March 6.
A strong explosion rocked the façade of a synagogue – which also serves as a Jewish museum – in Liège, Belgium, earlier this week.

Church Matters

Property tycoon vows to save churches shutting down across England. British property developer Samuel Leeds has launched a plan to buy and preserve churches across England, saying that Christian buildings should remain places of worship and community good rather than being converted into other facilities. Leeds made an appeal on social media, stating; “if you know a church that's for sale and potentially closing down, let me know … I wanna buy it. I don't care how profitable the conversion will be.” More than 3,500 churches have closed across the UK in the past decade, some being repurposed as mosques and nightclubs, as falling congregations and rising repair costs make their operation impossible. “If it was built as a church, I believe it needs to stay as a church,” Leeds stressed. “There's revival coming in England, and we need to keep our churches open." Read also.
Global Anglicans announce alternative authority to Canterbury. The Global Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans (known as GAFCON) has set up a council as an alternative to the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury – with the aim of “meeting the needs” of the majority of Anglicans around the world. GAFCON rejects the leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury-designate Sarah Mullally over her “unbiblical and revisionist teachings regarding marriage and sexual morality”. The new Council is to be chaired by Archbishop Laurent Mbanda, the Primate of Rwanda. Earlier this week, the Church of England dismissed an appeal against the Archbishop of Canterbury’s handling of abuse allegations by a man who says he was abused by a priest in the Diocese of London. Ms Mullally is expected to be installed as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury on 25 March.

Society and Politics

Modernity’s self-destruct button. According to new research, in 2026, only 8% of global births will be in Europe, North America or Oceania (Australia, New Zealand, and a handful of smaller countries). Conversely, 85% of babies this year will be born in Africa and Asia (49% in Asia, 36% in Africa, and 7% in Latin America and the Caribbean). Europe is set to see a mere 4 million births, a great many of which will stem from migrants and immigrants from other countries – many of whom tend to produce large families. At the same time, abortion and euthanasia rates are on a steep increase in Europe; in the UK, 74% of those having abortions reported their ethnicity as ‘White’. Notes author and journalist Louise Perry, “If modern people will not reproduce themselves, then modernity cannot last.”

Top image - Al-Quds Day March and Rally, London (2023) - c/o www.ihrc.org.uk