Billionaire Reform UK donor Hossein “Sasan” Ghandehari was involved in a business venture with Astan Quds Razavi, an Iranian religious foundation under the authority of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the Guardian reported on Thursday.
Citing a French arbitration ruling, the newspaper said Ghandehari was the main investor behind a project to build and supply a fiber-optic network carrying telecommunications traffic across Iran between 2013 and 2016.
Ghandehari’s HP Trust ultimately owned Ori Group, which held a 49% stake in the joint venture, Omran Razavi International Co, while Astan Quds Razavi held 51%, according to the report.
The United States sanctioned Astan Quds Razavi in 2021, saying it was controlled by Iran’s supreme leader and held extensive economic assets for the benefit of Khamenei and senior government officials. The organization remains on the US sanctions list.
Ghandehari, an Iranian-born British businessman, has pledged to donate millions of pounds to Reform UK and previously gave £50,000 to Nigel Farage to cover two passes to the World Economic Forum in Davos, the Guardian reported.
Ghandehari’s lawyers said it would be misleading to characterize him as “working with Iran,” saying he later faced allegations from Iran’s Supreme National Security Council that he was working with hostile Western powers. They said his involvement in the telecom project was intended to expand access to information and promote political change.
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