European country arrests Iranian spy near military base
London police announced that a dual British-Azerbaijani citizen was arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on the British Royal Air Force base on the island. The suspect, Rashad Sultanov, 44, is being held in custody pending extradition proceedings and is suspected of passing information to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
London police announced today (Friday) that a dual British-Azerbaijani citizen was arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on the British Royal Air Force base on the island. The suspect, Rashad Sultanov, 44, from north London, is currently held in custody pending extradition proceedings. Sultanov is suspected of passing information to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and is accused of surveilling the base for a hostile entity. The head of the Counter Terrorism Command at London police said in a statement that the case demonstrates the police's ability to use national security legislation overseas, as British military bases are in the crosshairs of what is suspected to be an attack by a hostile state. Cyprus hosts two British military bases with sovereign status, including Akrotiri base, which was attacked by an Iranian drone in early March – just days after the start of Operation 'Roar of the Lion'. This is not the first time Azerbaijani citizens have been linked to espionage for Iran: nearly two years ago, in October 2024, seven immigrants from Azerbaijan were arrested in Israel on suspicion of spying for the ayatollah regime.