London Islamic centre brazenly showed Ayatollah’s ‘intifada’ rant despite Charity Commission probe

An Islamic centre in London continued to host a video of a pro-terror rant by Ayatollah Khamenei on its social media accounts, as well as clips that call for Israel’s destruction and vilify the West, despite being subject to an ongoing extremism inquiry by the Charity Commission.

The Islamic Centre of England (ICE), based in Maida Vale, has a YouTube channel that featured until last week a 2020 speech by the Iranian leader in which he extols “multiple intifadas” in the battle to remove the “cancerous tumour” of Israel.

Other clips made available by the ICE showed preachers claiming that the US and its allies “manufactured Isis” and “enslaved the whole world in their system” after the Second World War.

In November 2022, the JC revealed that children were filmed at the ICE for an Iranian regime propaganda video in which they sang a song called Hello Commander, which included verses that alluded to an apocalyptic massacre of Jews.

The Charity Commission launched its inquiry that same month. The ICE subsequently handed a new role to then-director Mir Abbas Hussain, who claimed in a 2021 speech that the “Zionist lobby” allowed Jews to “take revenge on Muslims”. 

Inside the ICE[Missing Credit]

Hussain, who was made ICE secretary a month after the probe was announced, also gave an incendiary address during a 2016 Quds Day rally in Canada.

The former director, who also goes by the name of Abbas Abedi, said in a YouTube video that remains online but is not hosted by ICE: “Zionism is the mother of extremism. Zionism is the mother of oppression across the world. Zionism is the mother of the Saudi royal family. Zionism is the father of the Saudi royal family.”

ICE also made Jafar Ali Najm a director just after the launch of the inquiry, in December 2022. A year before he was appointed, Najm was filmed quoting Khamenei and praying for his predecessor, Ayatollah Khomeini, in a video that remains on the ICE Facebook channel.

The ICE received an initial warning from the Charity Commission in July 2020 after it hosted a vigil for Iranian terror chief Qasem Soleimani – the architect of Iran’s foreign terror operations and the subject of UK counter-terror sanctions who was assassinated by the US.

The charity’s director during the vigil, Seyed Hashem Moosavi – who once called protesters against the Islamic Republic “soldiers of Satan” – stood down in November 2022 when the Charity Commission’s inquiry began, but remains involved in religious ceremonies at the centre.

The new evidence about ICE’s social media was obtained by advocacy and research group, United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), and shared exclusively with JC.

Kasra Aarabi, the director of IRGC research at Uani said: “It’s long past the time when the Charity Commission should have wrapped up this investigation and shut the ICE down. This UK-registered charity’s director is Ayatollah Khamenei’s personal representative in Britain. It is simply unacceptable for Ayatollah Khamenei to have what amounts to an official office in the UK.”

The Charity Commission launched its inquiry – the watchdog’s most serious form of investigation – into the ICE in 2022 after the centre failed to put together an anti-extremism “action plan”. The centre was closed between May and July 2023 pending an investigation by the commission.

In its 2020 warning following the Soleimani vigil, the Charity Commission found the trustees of the ICE had “failed to discharge their legal duties towards the charity, which had resulted in misconduct and/or mismanagement” and had “put the charity’s reputation at risk”.

Despite this, the ICE continued to host a number of controversial events and speakers.

A video hosted by ICE[Missing Credit]

At the centre’s 2020 “International Islamic Unity Conference”, Mir Abbas Hussain can be seen in a video that remains online criticising “so-called freedom of speech”, citing insults to the prophet of Islam and French cartoons. Freedom was not “reciprocated”, he said, as “they don’t allow [people] to talk about the Holocaust”.

In another tape from the 2020 conference that remains online but is not on an ICE-run channel, Hussain called on Muslims to “stand firmly against the common and united enemies of Islam”. He lamented “so-called Muslims” who were “the puppets of the arrogant powers”, naming Saudi Arabia.

In a 2021 talk at ICE that also remains live, Hussain praised Khomeini for his service to Allah and his strength against “all types of power”.

In 2022, the charity hosted Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, a prominent Iranian cleric close to the regime who is known for recruiting students for the IRGC. In a speech to the centre via video link that was removed from Facebook following the JC’s enquiries this week, he thanks the organisation, “especially my dear brother Sayyid Hashim Moosavi”.

A video shared in April 2020 that is stamped with ICE’s charity logo and removed from YouTube following the JC’s inquiries this week, celebrates the defeat of the Isis terror group and promotes the conspiracy theory that it was “manufactured by America’s allies”.

This theory was regurgitated at an October 2021 “Islamic Unity” conference inside ICE, when preacher Musharraf al-Husseini said – in a video that also remains live on the centre’s Facebook page – the US and its allies “enslaved the whole world in their system” after the world wars.

Husseini goes on to state: “For that system, the main problem is Islam, so they created Isis, ISL and these sorts of things, just to defame Islam.”

In the Khamenei video, uploaded to the charity’s YouTube channel in May 2020 but removed following the JC’s inquiries this week, the Supreme Leader delivers an extended speech on Israel.

He said: “This cancerous tumour [Israel], from its beginning, has grown incrementally and its treatment must be incremental too. Multiple intifadas and continuous resistance have succeeded in achieving very important incremental goals... this cancerous tumour should be fought against.”

The footage cuts to an image of stone-throwing as Khamenei declares: “By God’s assistance and will, Palestine will get rid of its enemies. Al-Quds is the capital of Palestine.

“The Palestinian people’s March of Return in Gaza will finally result in the liberation of Palestine someday and the owners of these lands will return to their lands, God willing.”

Khamenei asserts that Palestinians should have the right to “decide on the fate of others who entered Palestine, like Zionists and their leaders” and depicts images of children in green bandanas, waving flags.

Denouncing US policy, Khamenei continues: “The policy that the US has adopted regarding Palestine is satanic and filthy, and named it the ‘deal of the century’ but they should know that this ‘deal of the century’ they have imagined will, by the Divine Grace, never come true.”

The video cuts to images of the US and Israeli flags in flames.

A Charity Commission spokeswoman confirmed that the statutory inquiry into the ICE was ongoing, but did not comment further.

The claims about the ICE come amid Uani’s campaign to make Britain a “Khamenei free zone”.

The advocacy group has asked the government to shut down Khamenei’s British network and expel regime representatives from the country. They have received support from MPs and peers across both main parties, including the government’s independent adviser on political violence and disruption, Lord Walney.

In a blog post, the centre has affirmed its “religious links with Iran” but has denied political ties to the regime. Governing documents stipulate that “at least one” of the ICE trustees shall be a “well reputed religious [Shia] scholar”.

“While Khamenei also has a political role in Iran, the centre’s connection to him is a religious one,” the ICE states.

In response to the JC’s inquiry, the ICE said it was not the “London office” of Iran’s IRGC.

It added: “ICE is a religious and cultural centre serving the Muslim community in London and is fully independent of any foreign government or political entity.

“We operate under the laws of the United Kingdom, and our activities are focused solely on religious, educational, and community services. ICE is a charity acting in pursuit of its charitable purposes and does not promote or endorse extremism or unlawful activity.

“The Charity Commission opened an inquiry into ICE, and part of the purposes of that review was to review our governance processes in relation to speakers and events. We have and are fully cooperating with the Commission… we take our legal and regulatory obligations seriously.”

On their memorial for General Soleimani, ICE said: “Any commemoration events held previously was by way of religious observance, as Muslims are obligated to hold religious rites for the deceased, regardless of their individual character and associations. The Centre does not promote political persons nor condone (or otherwise) the political views or actions of such persons.”

Addressing videos of trustees talking about Israel, ICE said: “The Centre takes the position that it acknowledges the rights of individuals to express their own views and opinions on a subject, but these must not conflict with the law and in particular must not promote terrorism or extremism.

“Any statements made by any or some of our trustees or former trustees should be understood in the broader context of promoting fundamental human rights, not as incitement to violence. While we respect the right of individuals to express their views, ICE as an organisation does not promote violent rhetoric nor denigration of other faiths.

“ICE does not support conspiracy theories. We provide a platform for religious and educational discussions, for the benefit of our beneficiaries. Speakers can share their views on current affairs and ethical topics as scholars, but when individuals speak at the Centre, they are required to undergo our due diligence processes and also act in accordance with our charity's policies and procedures. Any personal views expressed by an individual should not be regarded as the views of the Islamic Centre of England.”

"ICE is not the official office of Ayatollah Khamenei or any other religious or political person. The Centre is an independent English charity.

“As part of its religious purposes, ICE serves Shia communities of various nationalities. It provides religious services and counsel based on the edicts of Theologians who are considered religious scholars of sufficient calibre of religious knowledge, and this includes Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei. However, this guidance is strictly within the scope of his role as a spiritual and religious authority.

“ICE’s religious services are not exclusive to those who follow Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei. ICE also provides religious support to individuals who follow other ulema and jurisconsults.”

In response to the JC’s inquiry, Hussain said he was not a “representative of any foreign country.

“I am an independent British citizen, proudly serving my local community.”

On Khomeini, he added: “Millions of people admire Imam Khomeini’s spiritual life, whether you agree with it or not.

“As a British citizen, I have the right to freedom of speech and have consistently spoken against injustice and oppression. Criticism of Zionism is… the stance of millions of free and independent people worldwide.

“Freedom of speech should apply universally. Many independent thinkers argue that this principle should be upheld for all and should not be manipulated to justify insults against revered religious figures.

He said his Quds Day speech was “From many years ago, at a time when I was not a trustee of any charity.”

He denied making a speech in 2021 about the “Zionist lobby”.

On the inquiry, he added: “While it is true that the Charity Commission has opened an inquiry into ICE, it is important to emphasise that this inquiry is not related to extremism… We are fully cooperating with the Commission and take our legal and regulatory obligations seriously.

“ICE is a religious and cultural institution dedicated to serving the Muslim community in London. It is fully independent of any foreign government or political entity. We operate strictly under UK law, focusing on religious, educational, and community services. ICE is a registered charity, working within its charitable objectives, and does not promote or endorse extremism or unlawful activities.”

Najm and Moosavi were contacted for comment.