Iran ‘sets up network of terror cells in Africa to strike at Western targets such as military bases and oil fields’
Iran is setting up terror cells in Africa to strike at Western targets in retaliation for economic sanctions by Washington last year, security officials have said.
The network is being established on the orders of Qassem Suleimani, the head of the Quds Force, a section of Iran’s Republican Guard Corps responsible for unconventional warfare and intelligence activities overseas.
It will target important assets like military bases, oil fields, and embassies, and is thought to be active in countries including Chad, Sudan, Ghana, Niger, Gambia, and the Central African Republic.
The network was uncovered following a series of arrests in Chad in April, the Daily Telegraph reported.
A senior Western security source told the Telegraph: “Iran is setting up a new terrorist infrastructure in Africa with the aim of attacking Western targets.
“It is all part of Tehran’s attempts to expand its terrorist operations across the globe.”
Tensions between the Iranian regime and Western countries have escalated in recent months, after the United States withdrew from an international deal intended to regulate Iran’s nuclear programme.
After withdrawing from the deal, Washington reimposed a series of trade sanctions intended to target critical areas of Iran’s economy, including its energy, shipping and shipbuilding, and financial sectors.
Iran has responded by accelerating its enrichment of uranium, a move confirmed by the UN’s nuclear watchdog this month, and demanding that other Western powers work to ease the impact of the sanctions.
Intelligence officials have also said that the new terror network was conceived after Iran agreed to halt its uranium enrichment as part of the deal, signed in 2015.
The operation is being organised by Unit 400, a specialised section of the Quds Force run by Hamed Abdollahi, a veteran officer designated by the US in 2012 as supporting terrorist activity.
Investigators estimate that 300 militants aged 25-35 have so far been recruited and undergone training at Iran-run camps in Iraq and Syria.
US officials have said that a warning has been circulated to its diplomatic and military missions in countries in which Iranian cells are thought to be established.
The revelations come after the discovery earlier this month of Iran-backed groups stockpiling explosives on the outskirts of London.
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Last week, Iran shot down an unmanned US drone, claiming the drone had violated its airspace.
The US said the drone had been in international airspace, and came within minutes of launching a retaliatory strike, stoking fears of further escalations.
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