The networks were allegedly “operating under the guise of charitable and cultural organizations to collect intelligence,” according to Siavash Moslemi, one of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders in Mazandaran.
The IRGC’s media center quoted Moslemi as stating that the members of the networks entered Iran “under the guise of trade companies, as well as cultural and charitable centers,” and “were seeking to gather information and establish networks of influence.”
Moslemi further claimed that the US and Israeli intelligence services “are seeking to infiltrate” into Iran and conduct espionage operations “under the guise of foreign nationals and displaced persons.” He noted that the success in dismantling the alleged networks “prevented security threats and potential crises.”
The announcement of Iran’s dismantling of these spy networks notably comes just a day after Tehran’s Supreme Court formally charged two British citizens, Lindsay and Craig Foreman, with espionage. The couple, detained since January, were accused of entering the country under the pretext of tourism to gather information.
For her part, Lindsay Foreman told the Spanish outlet, Sur, in December that she was conducting her PhD studies in positive psychology and surveying people in different countries for her research.
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