An anti-regime protester climbed the balcony of the Iranian embassy in London on Friday and tore down the flag of the Islamic Republic and replaced it with the pre-1979 Iranian “Lion and Sun” emblem, video footage showed.
The protester climbed the front of the embassy building in Kensington before pulling down the regime flag and hoisting the historic symbol associated with Iran’s monarchy before the 1979 Islamic Revolution, as a large crowd of anti-regime protesters cheered.
The Metropolitan Police said officers responded and made two arrests: one for aggravated trespass and assault on an emergency worker and another for aggravated trespass. Police say they are also looking for another person for trespassing. It was not immediately clear whether the protester who took down the flag was among those arrested.
EXILED Iranian PRINCE SAYS REGIME ‘VERY CLOSE TO INVADE’ AGAINST NATIONAL UNTIL
A protester stands on the balcony of the Iranian embassy in London after replacing the flag of the Islamic Republic with the pre-1979 Iranian “Lion and Sun” emblem during a demonstration. Video and footage of the incident circulated on social media. (Pegah Janbakhsh via Storyful)
The embassy’s protest comes as Iran faces its biggest wave of unrest in years. President Trump has warned the regime that the US will protect protesters if necessary.
Potkin Azarmehr, a British-Iranian journalist, said the unrest is in stark contrast to Iran’s 2009 Green Movement, when protesters openly questioned whether the Obama administration supported them.
“Any international support, both at grassroots and government level, is encouraging.”
He said global attention is important for protesters on the ground, but questioned the lack of visible demonstrations by Western activist groups.
An Iranian internet outage activated the centralized kill switch to cover up alleged crimes as protests mounted. (Sadegh Nikgostar ATPImages/Getty Images)
“The question is where are the Western activist elite demonstrators? Why aren’t they protesting? Are they on the side of the ayatollahs? An archaic religious apartheid?”
GRAHAM WARNS Iranian AYATOLLAH: ‘TRUMP IS GOING TO KILL YOU’ IF INTERNAL CRACKDOWN CONTINUES
The demonstrations that began on December 28 over economic grievances have since spread across the country and become a direct challenge to Iran’s clerical leadership. Solidarity protests with Iranian demonstrators have also emerged in other major European cities, including Paris and Berlin. A protest also took place outside the White House in Washington, DC
At least 72 people were killed and more than 2,300 arrested during protests in Iran on Saturday, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.
Some protests included chants in support of Iran’s former monarch, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who died in 1980. His son, Reza Pahlavi, has publicly called for the demonstrations to continue. The Iranian regime has also cut off nationwide internet access.
At a press conference in Washington DC on Friday, Trump said that Iran is under increasing pressure.
“Iran is in big trouble,” Trump said. “It seems that people are taking over certain cities that no one thought possible just a few weeks ago. We are closely monitoring the situation.”
Trump warned that the United States would respond strongly if the regime resorted to mass violence.
A vehicle burns during protests in Tehran, Iran, January 8, 2026. (Khosh Iran/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
“We’re going to hit them hard where it hurts,” Trump said. “And that doesn’t mean putting your boots on the ground, it means hitting them really, really hard where it hurts.”
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has announced a coming crackdown despite US warnings, according to the Associated Press.
Tehran escalated its threats on Saturday, with Iran’s attorney general, Mohammad Movahedi Azad, warning that anyone participating in protests would be considered an “enemy of God,” a charge punishable by death. The statement, broadcast by Iranian state television, said even those who “helped rioters” would be charged.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“Prosecutors must carefully and without delay, by issuing indictments, prepare the grounds for the trial and decisive confrontation with those who, by betraying the nation and creating uncertainty, seek foreign domination over the country,” the statement said.
“Proceedings must be conducted without leniency, compassion or indulgence.”
