Iran says it has arrested four alleged cells working for Israel’s Mossad spy agency that had planned to use months-long street protests as cover to carry out “hybrid terrorist operations,” according to state run media.
A statement from Iran’s intelligence ministry carried by the Islamic Republic News Agency claims the teams were nabbed before they could carry out their plans.
It says all members of the four cells were arrested, without detailing the exact number of people allegedly implicated in the plot. It also claims information about an alleged Mossad hitman in a European country will be published later.
Nationwide protests erupted in September after the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who was detained by the country’s morality police for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code for women.
The protests have since transformed into calls for the overthrow of Iran’s ruling clerics, presenting one of the most durable challenges to the theocracy since the chaotic years following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The regime has regularly blamed Israel and the United States for fomenting the widely popular protests, without offering evidence.
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