Sep. 5 – Israel said it monitored and targeted the Islamic Republic of Iran’s military officials and nuclear scientists through their bodyguards’ phones for several years, as new details emerged about its assassination of key officials in June.
Israeli and Iranian officials said the bodyguards’ careless use of their mobile phones, including posting on social media, enabled the state to hunt down targets and kill them, according to a report by the New York Times.
The assassinations were part of Israel’s “Operation Rising Lion” a military offensive in June which included strikes on Iran’s key nuclear sites and the assassination of senior officials working for the regime.
Concerns for the wellbeing of detained British nationals Lindsay and Craig Foreman were raised by their family, after the couple were reportedly taken to a court room in Tehran for a hearing on Wednesday without notice.
Their son, Joe Bennett, said the family were only told about the hearing the following day, and that the Foremans were given a “state-appointed lawyer they only just met”.
The Islamic Republic has been condemned by countries around the world for its arbitrary detentions of dual and foreign nationals which the regime has been accused of using as leverage in diplomatic negotiations with states.
And Iran’s currency fell to a near all-time low following the threat of international sanctions which could be reimposed on the country as early as next month.
The sanctions could be revived through a snapback mechanism outlined in a 2015 nuclear deal which limits Iran’s nuclear program in return for sanctions relief, a process which the U.K., France and Germany have already started.
Iran is currently facing an economic crisis fueled by government mismanagement, widespread corruption and ongoing western sanctions.
