Dariush: Bomb scare cancels London gig of singer critical of Iran's government

Popular Iranian singer Dariush Eghbali’s concert in London was cancelled and evacuated on Sunday evening after a bomb threat was received by UK police.

Eghbali, well known for protest songs and his opposition to the Iranian government, had been performing at the Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith, west London. 

“Almost an hour after starting the concert, suddenly some of the staff appeared on the stage and started to talk to [Eghbali],” Mahdi Taghizadeh, a software engineer who attended the concert, told Middle East Eye. 

“He told the audience that he will come back in 10 minutes. But right after that, another member of staff started to read from a piece of paper that the concert had been cancelled because of security issues.” 

In a statement on Sunday, London’s Metropolitan Police said that it had received an anonymous threat towards a music venue which it determined as likely to be the Eventim Apollo. 

“There was nothing to indicate that the threat made was genuine but at 20:21hrs officers attended the venue to speak to security staff and to determine whether they were aware of anything suspicious or otherwise of concern,” it said. 

“Nothing of suspicion had been brought to the attention of staff but at around 20:40hrs, the venue management took the decision to evacuate as a precaution.” 

There were no reports of injuries or suspicious items, the statement added.

'London should be safer'

Eghbali left Iran in 1978, and has been in exile since the Islamic Revolution took hold a year later. He has frequently voiced his support for anti-government demonstrations back home, including the widespread protests in recent weeks sparked following the death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. 

According to Taghizadeh, many of the attendees were critics of the Iranian government. 

“They were chanting between the songs during the concert,” he said, referring to the portion of the show before the cancellation. “Chants like ‘death to the dictator’.” 

'I have never seen anything like this in London. London should be safer'
- Dariush Eghbali, singer

The evacuation prompted initial confusion among the concert goers, who later launched anti-Iranian government protests outside the venue. 

The Metropolitan Police told MEE it would not be able to provide further detail beyond Sunday evening’s statement as its inquiries remain ongoing.

MEE has asked Eventim Apollo for comment. A staff member outside the venue told MEE that it had reopened on Monday, with an event scheduled to go ahead in the evening. 

In a video statement shortly after the evacuation, Eghbali was critical of the handling of the incident. 

“I have never seen anything like this in London. London should be safer,” he said. He apologised to fans “for the police and all those who did not fulfil their responsibility properly and caused people to leave the concert half-finished”. 

"Many people do not like our voices to be heard and are upset about our solidarity and sympathy, especially in London,” he added.

Taghizadeh said he believed the incident was a “bluff” by people supportive of the Iranian government who wanted to “ruin the event”. 

“I think they tried to cancel the event because…  people were singing and chanting and filming using their mobile phones. The weapon Iranians have is raising awareness, and sending videos of solidarity in and outside Iran.” 

He called on UK authorities to clarify what it was doing to ensure the safety of Iranians living in the country amid the ongoing protests. 

On Monday, the UK foreign office announced that it had sanctioned senior Iranian officials, including from the so-called "morality police" that had been responsible for Amini's arrest, accusing her of wearing her hijab inappropriately. 

"We will continue to stand with the people of Iran as they fight for their human rights in the face of shocking violence," Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said.