Iran has announced the arrest of dozens of people suspected of cooperating with Israel and providing information about military and strategic facilities. The arrests took place simultaneously in several provinces amid the ongoing escalation between Iran, Israel, and the United States, UNN reports, citing Reuters.
Details
According to Iranian authorities, 20 people were detained in the province of West Azerbaijan in the northwest of the country, suspected of transmitting sensitive information about military and security facilities. Another 10 people, according to state media, were arrested in northeastern Iran on suspicion of collecting data on strategic facilities and infrastructure. In Lorestan province, according to the official version, three more suspects were detained.
Iranian security forces claim that these detentions are part of measures to counter a broader campaign of destabilization within the country. Tehran believes that Israel and the United States are using local informants and agents to gather intelligence and destabilize the internal situation amid the war.
Reuters also reports, citing a source familiar with Israel's strategy, that the Israeli side has intensified attacks on checkpoints controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in recent days, using data from local informants. This includes targets in Tehran, among which may have been posts of the Basij formations, which are subordinate to the IRGC.
Context
The current wave of detentions is a continuation of a series of arrests that Iran reported earlier. On March 10, the country's intelligence ministry announced the arrest of dozens of people, including a foreigner, suspected of spying for the United States and Israel. At the same time, it was reported that 30 people, whom Tehran links to American and Israeli structures, were detained, as well as 81 people accused of transmitting information to hostile media and foreign structures.
Amid these events, human rights activists previously expressed concern that Iranian authorities might be using espionage charges to strengthen internal control and pressure opponents.
At the same time, official Tehran denies these accusations and insists that it is about real counteraction to external threats.
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