Two Iranian nationals arrested by Cypriot police were members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps and were planning to attack Jews and Israelis on the island.

By Vered Weiss,World Israel News

Reports that two Iranian nationals arrested by Cypriot police were members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and were planning to attack Jews and Israelis on the island have been confirmed by the Mossad.

The arrest of the two Iranian men gathering intelligence on Jewish and Israeli targets in Cyprus last month was reported by the newspaper Kathimerini Cyprus. 

The Israeli Prime Minister’s office released a statement on behalf of the Mossad, “The Cypriot security and enforcement agencies thwarted, in partnership with the Mossad for intelligence and special functions, an Iranian terrorist infrastructure that planned to carry out attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets in Cyprus.”

The Mossad statement continued, “Thanks to the preventive activity and the arrest of the cell by the security services in Cyprus, a great deal of information was received, which led to the exposure of the terrorists, the methods of operation, the targets of the attack, and the Iranian plan to cause the killing of innocents in Cyprus and other arenas.”

In addition, the Mossad issued a warning that Iran has stepped up its plans to target Jews and Israelis globally and that it “doesn’t shy away from any means to achieve its criminal goals.”

According to the National Security Council, many Israelis have sought solace in Cyprus since October 7th, but the use of Northern Cyprus as an area to carry out terrorist attacks on Jews and Israelis is a “troubling issue.”

The National Security Council and intelligence community have upgraded the threat to Israelis and Jewish travelers abroad following the October 7th massacre.

This is the third time in the past few years that Cyprus has been the setting for an attempted terror attack.

Six months ago, Cypriot intelligence officials along with Israeli counterparts prevented a terrorist incident planned to target Israelis on the island.

Security forces in Cyprus tracked a terrorist group that had been stationed in the northern Turkish part of Cyprus and was planning an attack in the southern Greek section of the island.

Also, two years ago, Russian nationals were caught with plans to attack Jews in Cyprus.

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Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps vows revenge after four members killed during clashes in southeast Iran. Unclear if clashes related to protests following death of young woman at the hands of modesty police.

By The Associated Press

An attack by armed separatists on a police station in a southeastern city killed 19 people, including four members of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported Saturday.

The assailants in Friday’s attack hid among worshippers near a mosque in the city of Zahedan and attacked the nearby police station, according to the report.

IRNA quoted Hossein Modaresi, the provincial governor, as saying 19 people were killed. The outlet said 32 Guard members, including volunteer Basiji forces, were also wounded in the clashes.

It was not immediately clear if the attack was related to nationwide antigovernment protests gripping Iran after the death in police custody of a young Iranian woman.

Sistan and Baluchestan province borders Afghanistan and Pakistan and has seen previous attacks on security forces by ethnic Baluchi separatists, although Saturday’s Tasnim report did not identify a separatist group allegedly involved in the attack.

IRNA on Saturday identified the dead as Hamidreza Hashemi, a Revolutionary Guard colonel; Mohammad Amin Azarshokr, a Guard member; Mohamad Amin Arefi, a Basiji, or volunteer force with the IRG; and Saeed Borhan Rigi, also a Basiji.

Tasnim and other state-linked Iranian news outlets reported Friday that the head of the Guard’s intelligence department, Seyyed Ali Mousavi, was shot during the attack and later died.

It is not unusual for IRG members to be present at police bases around the country.

The Guard’s chief, Gen. Hossein Salami said the Revolutionary Guard will take revenge for the killing of its forces in Zahedan. “We consider revenge for the blood of the IRGC and Basiji martyrs and the people who were victims of the Black Friday crime in Zahedan to be on our agenda,” IRNA reported.

Thousands of Iranians have taken to the streets over the last two weeks to protest the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who had been detained by the morality police in the capital of Tehran for allegedly wearing her mandatory Islamic headscarf too loosely.

The protesters have vented their anger over the treatment of women and wider repression in the Islamic Republic. The nationwide demonstrations rapidly escalated into calls for the overthrow of the clerical establishment that has ruled Iran since its 1979 Islamic revolution.

The protests have drawn supporters from various ethnic groups, including Kurdish opposition movements in the northwest that operate along the border with neighboring Iraq. Amini was an Iranian Kurd and the protests first erupted in Kurdish areas.

Iranian state TV has reported that at least 41 protesters and police have been killed since the demonstrations began Sept. 17. An Associated Press count of official statements by authorities tallied at least 14 dead, with more than 1,500 demonstrators arrested.

Also on Friday, Iran said it had arrested nine foreigners linked to the protests, which authorities have blamed on hostile foreign entities, without providing evidence.

It has been difficult to gauge the extent of the protests, particularly outside of Tehran. Iranian media have only sporadically covered the demonstrations.

Witnesses said scattered protests involving dozens of demonstrators took place Saturday around Tehran University in downtown Tehran. Riot police dispersed the protesters, who chanted “death to the dictator.” Some witnesses said police fired teargas.

Meanwhile, more than 10,000 people expressed solidarity with the antigovernmental protests in Iran at demonstrations across Germany on Saturday, the dpa news agency reported.

Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, meanwhile, reminded Iran’s armed forces of their duty to people’s lives and rights, the foreign-based opposition Telegram channel Kaleme reported.

Mousavi’s Green Movement challenged Iran’s disputed 2009 presidential election in unrest at a level unseen since its 1979 Islamic Revolution before being crushed by authorities.

“Obviously your capability that was awarded to you is for defending people, not suppression people, defending oppressed, not serving powerful people and oppressors,” he said.

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On November 19, 2020, IRINN TV (Iran) reported about a new Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy battleship made from a salvaged Italian shipping freighter. It said it’s equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and equipment.

The post WATCH: Iran’s Revolutionary Guard unveils battleship made from salvaged Italian freighter appeared first on World Israel News.

An official said the decision comes after intelligence showed that the Iranians have loaded military equipment and missiles onto small boats controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

By Associated Press

The U.S. will move a Patriot missile battery into the Middle East to counter threats from Iran, the Pentagon said Friday, reflecting ongoing concerns that Tehran may be planning to attack American forces or interests in the region.

The Defense Department released a statement about the move but provided no details. An official said the decision comes after intelligence showed that the Iranians have loaded military equipment and missiles onto small boats controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard. The official was not authorized to discuss the information publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Officials had said earlier in the week that sending a Patriot battery to the area was under discussion and was part of the initial request made by the Pentagon’s U.S. Central Command. They said it took a few days to get final approval for the Patriot, a long-range, all-weather air defense system to counter tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and advanced aircraft.

The U.S. removed Patriot missile batteries from Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan late last year. It was not clear if the battery would go back to one of those countries.

U.S. officials announced Sunday that they would rush an aircraft carrier strike group and bombers to the region. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and accompanying ships have passed through the Suez Canal and are now in the Red Sea.

Officials had initially indicated that the military moves were based in part on indications that Iran had moved short-range ballistic missiles onto small boats called dhows along its shore.

Officials would not say if the intelligence showed that the boats have mobile launchers on them. But a notice to mariners in the region has warned of potential threats to commercial maritime traffic.

John Bolton, the national security adviser, announced the initial moves on Sunday, citing “troubling and escalatory indications and warnings” but did not explain what they were.

On Friday, a defense official said the Iranian threats also include potential attacks by Iranian proxies, such as Shia militias in Iraq.

Several officials said they have not yet seen any tangible move by Iran in reaction to the U.S. military shifts in the area. But they also noted there have been no attacks.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a quick visit Tuesday to Baghdad to meet with top leaders and underscore Iraq’s need to protect Americans in their country.

The Pentagon also said Friday that the USS Arlington, an amphibious transport ship, will move to the Middle East region earlier than planned. The ship is in Europe and will be replacing the USS McHenry, which is scheduled to leave.

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