The Charity Commission is looking into more allegations against the Islamic Centre of England, just months after it issued the charity with an official warning.
The commission confirmed that it was “assessing” a speech made this week by Seyed Moosavi, one of the charity’s trustees, in which he described protesters in Iran as “soldiers of Satan”.
Protests started in Iran last month after Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman, was arrested by the country’s so-called ‘morality police’, which enforces strict dress codes for women. Amini died shortly afterwards.
According to The Times newspaper, Moosavi said people protesting for women’s right to dress as they choose were “just like a poison”.
The Islamic Centre of England received a written warning from the Charity Commission in June after it hosted a candle-lit vigil in memory of Major General Qasem Soleimani, who was subject to terrorism sanctions by the UK government.
The warning told trustees they must take care over “any future events” hosted by the charity.
A commission spokesperson said: “We are aware of a speech given by a trustee of the Islamic Centre of England.
“We have an ongoing regulatory compliance case into this charity to monitor whether it has addressed an official warning previously issued.
“We will be assessing this speech as part of this case.”
The Islamic Centre for England did not respond to a request for comment.