Sources confirm Whitehall is in emergency crisis talks tonight after intelligence services intercepted credible plans for an assassination attempt on US officials attending a UFC event in London. The plot is believed to be Iranian-backed, with operatives tracked for weeks by MI5 and the Metropolitan Police.
Documents seen by this newsroom detail a coordinated operation to target American diplomats and military personnel at the O2 Arena during the high-profile mixed martial arts event. The venue was packed with thousands of spectators when security services moved in, detaining three individuals hours before the first fight. Anti-terror officers raided a flat in East London and a storage unit in Kent, seizing weapons and encrypted devices.
One source close to the investigation described the plot as "advanced and chilling", with a direct link to Iranian intelligence elements. The source stated: "This was not small time. The cell had resources and training. They were prepared to die."
The US State Department was alerted 36 hours ago, leading to a discreet withdrawal of senior American attendees. The UFC itself faced a last-minute security review, with fighters and officials kept in the dark. A Whitehall official confirmed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was briefed on the threat this morning, triggering a COBRA meeting to coordinate the response.
No official statement has been made by the Home Office, but an announcement is expected within hours. The Iranian embassy in London has dismissed the allegations as "baseless propaganda". But this reporter trusts sources who have never led us wrong.
This is the same Tehran that has been exposed for running assassination networks on European soil. They targeted dissidents in the UK, they plotted against journalists in the Netherlands. Now they are after American officials on British soil. And Whitehall is scrambling to contain the fallout.
Every security camera at the O2 is being reviewed. Every phone signal is being traced. But here is what keeps investigators awake: how many more sleepers are out there?
The operation was not just about killing. It was about sending a message. A direct threat to the Western alliance playing out in a London arena. The timing is everything. This comes as the US and UK ramp up sanctions on Iran and deepen military ties with Israel. The regime in Tehran sees the UFC as soft target: high visibility, heavy media coverage, maximum humiliation.
The fear among security officials is that this plot is part of a broader campaign. One former MI6 officer told me: "This is the new face of asymmetric warfare. They are not sending armies. They send lone wolves and small cells to hit us where we least expect."
Tonight, London stands on edge. The streets around Whitehall are quiet, but the phones are ringing off the hook. We are following multiple strands of this story. The arrests. The intelligence trail. The diplomatic row that is building.
My sources inside the investigation are clear: this is not over. More arrests are expected. And the question hanging over the government: how did it get this far?
