Four people were injured and 14 others arrested after anti-government protests outside the Iranian embassy in London turned violent on Friday night.
The London Ambulance Service said the four were taken to hospital after emergency services were called to an incident in South Kensington at around 8.45pm (GMT), News.Az reports, citing foreign media.
Alongside those taken to hospital, two others were treated at the scene, according to the London Ambulance Service.
Social media video footage appeared to show demonstrators being detained and others injured.
The London Metropolitan Police said officers were injured after objects were thrown at them, although the ambulance service did not specify whether those hospitalised were police officers or protesters.
“Several officers have suffered injuries,” the Metropolitan Police said in a post on X, saying that during the “ongoing disorder” objects had been thrown at police and “a number of people have been arrested on suspicion of violent disorder”.
A Met Police spokesperson confirmed on Saturday that 14 people were arrested in relation to the clashes.
Police said a protester climbed across balconies onto the embassy roof and removed a flag before being detained, following a similar incident last week in which a flag was torn down.
“During the ongoing protest at the Iranian Embassy this evening, a protester illegally accessed private property and climbed across multiple balconies onto the roof of the Embassy and removed a flag,” the Met Police wrote on X .
Police said last week that additional officers had been deployed to “prevent any disorder” and to protect the Iranian embassy.
Friday’s protest followed similar demonstrations worldwide, where both supporters and opponents of the Iranian government have gathered outside the country’s embassies.
Earlier this week, the Iranian ambassador in London was summoned to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) following the largest protests seen in Iran for years, sparked by economic grievances.
The nationwide demonstrations have since challenged the country’s theocratic system and have killed thousands, though they have subsided in recent days, according to monitoring groups.