Iran has claimed to have dismantled a “big spy network” tied to the US Central Intelligence Agency, amid rising tensions between the two countries.
LONDON (Reuters) - Iran said on Monday it had exposed a large cyber espionage network it alleged was run by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and that several U.S. spies had been arrested in different countries as the result of this action.
U.S.-Iran tensions are growing following accusations by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration that Tehran last Thursday attacked two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, a vital oil shipping route. Iran denies having any role.
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, said on Monday: “One of the most complicated CIA cyber espionage networks that had an important role in the CIA’s operations in different countries was exposed by the Iranian intelligence agencies a while ago and was dismantled.”
The alleged spies were all Iranian citizens, officials said, trained by CIA officers to collect classified information and transmit that information from inside Iran. The spies received fake identification papers from the CIA, an Iranian spokesperson said.
US President Donald Trump responded to the allegations on Twitter, stating that they were "totally false".
Tehran has made similar claims in the past and it was not immediately possible to determine whether the claims are legitimate.
The alleged spies were handed over to the judiciary. Some of the spies will be executed, while others decided to cooperate with Iran to work against the Americans, an Iranian official said at the press conference.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to Euronews' request for comment.
The CIA does not acknowledge overseas recruitment, according to NBC News.
