Sir Ken McCallum, director general of the British intelligence service MI5, in London, April 1, 2025. TOBY MELVILLE/REUTERS Though the sounds of missile strikes between Iran and the US-Israeli coalition have faded, Western intelligence agencies remain worried about another front of the conflict raging since March: covert attacks orchestrated by the regime in Tehran on European soil. Europe has long feared the repercussions from this conflict in the form of an "asymmetric response" from Iran, including espionage, sabotage and interference operations.
In the spring, French authorities described the threat as "low intensity." Since then, however, the attacks appear to have worsened. On October 12, no fewer than 32 countries – including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, the United States, Canada and the Netherlands – issued a joint statement to "condemn in the strongest terms Iran's use of violent attacks, including the acts of lethal plotting, arson, sabotage, cyber-attacks, and other hybrid activities against us and our partners."
The statement came after the British government attributed an incident that occurred on September 27 near the Royal Air Force base in Fairford, UK – which was hosting US military aircraft involved in the war against Iran – to Iranian intelligence or networks operating on their behalf. You have 84.44% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.
Le Monde states in its own voice that covert attacks on European soil are "orchestrated by the regime in Tehran", although its own earlier reporting shows the British government's case was a probabilistic assessment that Tehran rejected. The outlet also calls Iran's government "the regime" in narration. Later sentences attribute the Fairford accusation properly, but the opening frame hands the reader the accusation as settled fact.
States one side's claim as fact
Serious
“covert attacks orchestrated by the regime in Tehran on European soil”
Why this matters
The words "covert attacks orchestrated by the regime in Tehran" state, in Le Monde's own voice and with no attribution, that the Iranian government is behind attacks in Europe.
The impression it gives
That Iranian direction of these attacks is an established fact rather than an accusation made by Western governments.
The context
Le Monde's own article on the Fairford incident reports Britain's assessment as "highly likely" and "almost certainly directed", says Tehran rejected it, and says all seven suspects were released on bail. Even this article later frames the Fairford case as something the British government "attributed". The accusation is a government's claim, contested by Iran, not a settled fact.
Western intelligence agencies remain worried about what European governments describe as covert attacks directed by Iran on European soil, accusations Tehran has rejected.
Uses a loaded word
Minor
“the regime in Tehran”
Why this matters
Le Monde calls Iran's government "the regime" in its own narration, not inside a quotation.
The impression it gives
That the outlet's neutral description of Iran's government carries a verdict of illegitimacy.
The context
Nobody quoted in the article uses the word here; it is the outlet's own label. "Iran's government" describes the same actor without the verdict.