The son of Iran's supreme leader owns two luxury apartments in west London overlooking the Israeli embassy, raising fresh security concerns. Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, a possible successor to his father Ali Khamenei, is reported to own the high-end Kensington properties through associates. The apartments, on the sixth and seventh floors of a building near Kensington Palace, are believed to be worth more than £50 million.
According to a year-long investigation by Bloomberg, Khamenei has owned the apartments since 2014. The probe also claims he controls a wider portfolio of UK property, including 11 mansions on Hampstead's Bishops Avenue, purchased through a front man and an Isle of Man shell company. The properties are allegedly funded through Iran's sanction-busting oil programme.
Security experts warn the location could be used to monitor activity at the Israeli embassy, less than 50 metres away. A counter-terrorism specialist said the apartments provide a direct line of sight and could enable surveillance techniques, including photography and laser-assisted monitoring. The revelation follows the arrest of four Iranian men in north London on suspicion of spying for Iran's intelligence services, accused of surveilling Jewish locations and individuals.
The Kensington flats sit on Palace Green, an exclusive private road with heavy security. The apartments are formally owned through Ali Ansari, an Iranian oligarch and family friend, who purchased them in 2014 and 2016 for £16.7 million and £19 million respectively. Ansari also acquired the Hampstead properties on Khamenei's behalf for around £73 million through a company registered in the Isle of Man.
