Brigadier General Mohammad Kazemi, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s intelligence service, now claims that up to 20 foreign intelligence agencies were involved in the riots and disturbances that plagued Iran last year.
Kazemi says the riots broke out shortly after US authorities realized the failure of their foreign policy towards Iran after Joe Biden was elected president, and felt compelled to increase pressure on the Iranian government.
– After the Biden administration came to power, the Americans reached this strategic conclusion that they had faced failure in many foreign cases, and the reason for that was the actions of Iran and the management of its Leader; these failures had caused America’s international position to be overshadowed; so, Iran must pay the price, Kazemi said in an interview.
According to Kazemi, U.S. intelligence was actively working to ensure that the protests following the death of a 22-year-old woman in unclear circumstances during a police raid would continue at all costs, including turning these protests into strikes and riots and armed resistance against the Iranian government by engaging militant groups.
The Brigadier General also claims to have found evidence that nearly 20 foreign intelligence agencies were involved in the riots – including the US, UK, Israel, UAE, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, Canada and Bahrain.
Coordinated operation
According to Kazemi, French diplomats in Iran tried to gather information about the riots, Iran’s security and the status of its police force, among other things, and then forwarded this information to the embassy of another European country.
The Israeli regime allegedly raised money to support the rioters, receiving funding from the US and others for this purpose, and worked closely with the United Arab Emirates to support the riots in various ways.
28 European countries also considered closing their embassies during the riots to increase pressure on Iran. Foreign nationals from countries such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iraq were allegedly used to gather information about Iran and the riots.
In addition, the American CIA allegedly created and provided internet platforms to facilitate the global dissemination of news about the riots, and provided other technical equipment and mobile communication devices to help opponents of the regime.
“CIA, Mossad and MI6 in close cooperation”
The CIA is also said to have put together a team with the Israeli Mossad and the British MI6 to resume, towards the end of the riots, the project of assassinating Iranian scientists – especially in the fields of nuclear, space and military technology, which Israel had been engaged in for many years.
The Brigadier General further claims that the foreign forces devoted considerable resources to fomenting distrust among the Iranian people from different social strata and political orientations – including by accusing the regime of discrimination and violations of women’s rights or by claiming that the Islamic Republic was about to collapse.
The riots injured a large number of civilians as well as many police officers and guards and caused millions of dollars of damage to public buildings. In February, Iran’s leaders declared an amnesty for all those involved in the riots – but not for murderers or terrorists.
In Sweden and the West, the mass media image of the protests has been that they were popular and that the Iranian regime used excessive force against civilians in connection with them.