DUBAI, March 10 (Reuters) – Iran has arrested dozens including a foreign national for allegedly spying for the country’s “enemies”, the Intelligence Ministry said on Tuesday, amid a continued war with the U.S. and Israel.
The U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes against Iran on February 28, killing the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several commanders.
During the ongoing conflict, Iran has launched retaliatory strikes against Gulf countries that are U.S. allies and host American military bases.
Without identifying the arrested person’s nationality, Iran’s Intelligence Ministry said the foreign national “was conducting espionage on behalf of the United States and Israel, and acting as a proxy for two Gulf countries,” according to state media.
In the past years, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on espionage and security-related charges.
Rights groups have accused the Islamic Republic of trying to win concessions from other countries through arrests on security charges that may have been trumped up. Tehran denies arresting people for political reasons.
The ministry also said “30 spies, internal mercenaries, and operational agents of Israel and the U.S.” had been arrested over the past few days.
Separately, Iran’s Police chief Ahmadreza Radan told state TV that some 81 people had been detained so far for “sharing internal Iranian information with hostile media and enemies”. He did not give further information.
(Reporting by Elwely Elwelly; Editing by Alexandra Hudson, Parisa Hafezi and Stephen Coates)
