A leaked email seen by Middle East Eye has revealed that an Iranian opposition coalition is being promoted by pro-Israel publicists who work with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac) lobby group.

The Iran Freedom Congress (IFC), previously known as Dialogue for Iran, is “bringing together Iranian civil and political actors from a broad spectrum of backgrounds and perspectives” at a convention in London this weekend.

On its website, the IFC says it is “an independent initiative created by Iranians, and no foreign government or organisation has played a role in shaping the idea or the process”.

But the IFC is being publicised - apparently without the knowledge of some of those involved in the coalition - by Red Banyan, a crisis PR company that has a long history of working with Aipac and whose chief executive worked at the pro-Israel lobby group for more than seven years.