Ali Shamkhani was an ally of Alireza Akbari, a British-Iranian politician who was executed in January. Credit: Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
Iran replaced a top security chief after he was implicated in an alleged MI6 operation that leaked top-secret data on the regime's nuclear program to Israel.
On Monday, the Iranian president said he was replacing Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, with a senior member of the Revolutionary Guards. According to state media reports, Mr. Shamkhani had previously resigned from his position.
According to US and Iranian media reports, Mr. Shamkhani was an ally of Alireza Akbari, a British-Iranian politician who was executed by the regime in January accused of spying for MI6 in relation to its nuclear program.
In an audio recording obtained by BBC Persian, Mr. Akbari is heard saying that he received high-level intelligence from Mr. Shamkhani by offering him perfume and a shirt.
In a recent New report The York Times also says that Mr. Akbari passed such information to the UK, which then allegedly passed it on to Israel, including confidential data on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Escalation of the «shadow war»
Mr. Akbari also reportedly revealed the identity and activities of more than 100 Iranian officials, including Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, the top Iranian nuclear scientist who was later assassinated by Israel.
Israel views Iran's nuclear program as existential threat and has intensified attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists and infrastructure in recent years as part of an escalating «shadow war» with the regime.
While the UK has not confirmed claims that Mr. Akbari was an MI6 spy, the replacement of Mr. Shamkhani suggests that there has been a major breach of Iranian national security that has dealt a severe blow to the regime.
It also suggests that MI6 was able to obtain secret intelligence about Iran's nuclear activities that had previously eluded other Western spy networks.
Relatives of Mr. Akbari had previously dismissed suggestions that he was a spy, and it was said that he was the victim of a «political game» in Iran. He was reportedly brutally tortured prior to his execution before confessing to espionage.
Mr. Shamkhani was replaced by Ali Akbar Ahmadian, the former head of the strategic center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He is also a former navy commander and sits on a powerful expediency council that advises Iran's supreme leader.
Meanwhile on Monday, Israel accused Iran of turning the ships into armed «terrorist floating bases» that could be used to attack trade routes.
Speaking at a security conference in Israel, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the regime is installing drones, missile systems and intelligence equipment on commercial ships in the Persian Gulf. as evidenced by his actions in the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea. Iran is seeking to expand its presence to the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and even the shores of the Mediterranean,” Mr. Gallant said at a conference in Herzliya.
“This is a structured plan designed to threaten trade and air routes. – both military and civilian – and create a constant threat in the maritime arena,” he added.
Ships associated with Israel
The regime is suspected of a series of attacks on shipping in the Gulf region over the past few years, most notably the 2021 drone attack on the Mercer Street that killed a British sailor and a Romanian captain. At the time, Tehran denied responsibility for the incident. Several other recent attacks have targeted ships with commercial or indirect ties to Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened military action against Iran's nuclear program unless it is stopped, while Tehran has repeatedly insists on it. does not produce nuclear weapons.
However, recently, UN nuclear inspectors found 84% enriched uranium at Iranian nuclear facilities, just below the threshold for building a bomb.
This is not the first time Iran has been accused of converting ships for military purposes. Satellite imagery published in January by H.I. Sutton, an open source security analyst, showed that the Iranian navy is converting merchant ships into unmanned aircraft carriers.
Two years ago, in January 2021 2019, Iran unveiled a warship called the Makran, which was converted from a former oil tanker that also appeared to have drone launch capability.
This is not the first time Iran has been accused of converting ships for military purposes. On satellite images published in January by H.I. Sutton, an open source security analyst, suggests that Iran's navy is converting merchant ships into unmanned aircraft carriers.
In January 2021, Iran unveiled a warship called the Makran, converted from a former an oil tanker that, as it turns out, can also launch drones.
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