Fact Check: No UK Troops Deployed to Support Iran

January 28, 2026 | 12:38 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A Facebook post [archive] on January 18, 2026, claimed that the UK was deploying troops to support Iran. The post featured a photo of a line of troops in dark uniforms, purportedly British soldiers preparing to support Tehran.

"Backing Iran, the UK is ready to go down to the mountains to besiege the US and Israel and even provide Tehran with weapons," the post captioned the post. This post emerged amid a wave of protests in Iran since early January, where citizens have been demanding economic reforms due to soaring prices for basic necessities. The Iranian regime has reportedly committed violence that has resulted in at least 3,000 deaths.

So, is it true that British troops were deployed to Iran to assist Iran?

FACT CHECK

Tempo verified the content using a reverse image search and compared it with various authoritative sources. The search results indicate that the claim that British troops were deployed to Iran to encircle the United States and Israel is false.

The photo used in the post is identical to a video clip from the British media outlet, ITV News, dated March 5, 2025. The video, titled "King Charles on board aircraft carrier as his diplomatic bridge-building continues," documents a line of British Navy troops welcoming the visit of King Charles III aboard the aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales on March 4, 2025.

In reality, the aircraft carrier was leading a UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG) mission to the Indo-Pacific region, not Iran. This diplomatic and military mission aimed to assert the UK's maritime presence in the region, including joint exercises like Talisman Sabre and visits to Australia, Singapore, and Japan as a show of force in the South China Sea and Taiwan.

UK Response to Unrest in Iran

According to the UK Parliament website, the London government has not deployed any troops to support the Iranian regime. Instead, the UK officially condemned the violent actions of Tehran's authorities against demonstrators. British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, speaking before the House of Commons on January 13, 2026, reiterated her strong condemnation of the Iranian state's repression of protesters.

The UK government also issued a joint statement with Germany, France, and the G7 member states urging Iran to protect its citizens' rights to protest. As a follow-up measure, the UK plans to expand sanctions through new regulations targeting the financial, energy, transportation, software, and strategic industries that fuel Iran's nuclear escalation. This move aligns with the European Union's intention to impose similar sanctions.

As of January 14, 2026, the UK had sanctioned 286 individuals and 260 organizations affiliated with the Iranian regime and its nuclear development. The sanctions list includes the morality police and the Basij paramilitary force involved in suppressing protests.

Since 2025, the UK has placed Iran in the high-level category of its foreign influence scheme, equivalent to Russia. These strict restrictions also apply to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and other elements of the Iranian state.

CONCLUSION

Based on the results of our fact-checking, the Tempo Fact-Checking Team concludes that the claim that British troops were deployed to assist Iran is false.

TEMPO FACT-CHECK TEAM

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