Iran arrests Islamic State-linked group planning attacks

Iran has broken up an IS-linked group suspected of planning attacks in the country and trying to smuggle weapons in home appliances, its state news agency reported.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

08 August, 2017

Iran's security forces arrested 27 suspects believed to be plotting terror attacks [Getty]

Iranian security forces have broken up a group linked to Islamic State, which was planning attacks in religious centres in the country and trying to hide weapons in home appliances, state news agency IRNA reported.

The operation was conducted jointly with another country's agents and a total of 27 suspects were arrested. IRNA did not name the other country.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for an attack in June in which suicide bombers and gunmen attacked the Iranian Parliament and Ayatollah Khomeini's mausoleum in Tehran, killing 18 people. It threatened more attacks against Iran's Shia majority population, seen by the hard-line militants as heretics.

Intelligence Ministry agents "were able to arrest a terrorist group linked to Daesh that intended to carry out terror operations in religious cities," IRNA said, using an Arabic acronym for the group.

"The terrorists were trying to bring [weapons and ammunition] into the country by concealing them in home appliances," a ministry statement read.

It said 10 people were arrested at the group's leadership centre abroad and 17 people inside Iran. Five of the 17 were due to carry out the attacks in Iran and the other 12 were supporting them, statement said.

It did not identify the religious centres it said were the targets.