Israel’s Mossad identified a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) commander it says directed a series of thwarted attacks on Israeli and Jewish targets across multiple countries, exposing what it called a years-long Iranian campaign of global terrorism.
The Mossad named Sardar Ammar, a senior Quds Force officer operating under commander Esmail Ghaani, as the leader of a network responsible for planned operations in Australia, Greece, and Germany during 2024-2025, a statement released via the prime minister’s office on behalf of the Mossad said on Sunday.
The Mossad described the network’s methods as “terror without Iranian fingerprints,” using foreign recruits, criminal intermediaries, and covert communications to conceal Tehran’s role.
“Thanks to intensive activity with partners in Israel and abroad, dozens of attack tracks were thwarted, saving many lives,” the statement said.
In August, Australia expelled Iranian Ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi and announced plans to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization, after intelligence linked Tehran to antisemitic arson attacks in Melbourne and Sydney. Sadeghi denied the allegations upon his departure.
In Germany, authorities summoned Iran’s ambassador, Majid Nili Ahmadabadi, in July after the arrest of a Danish suspect accused of spying on Jewish and Israeli-linked sites in Berlin for Iranian intelligence. German officials said the surveillance could have been preparatory to terrorist attacks.
Iran’s covert campaign and regional reach
The Mossad accused Iran of pursuing a long-term strategy “to harm innocents around the globe while maintaining deniability,” but said the recent revelations “strip Iran of its space for denial and impose heavy diplomatic costs.”
The statement cited earlier cases in Greece as part of the same pattern. In 2024, Greek police arrested suspects, including Iranian and Afghan nationals, over arson attacks on an Israeli-owned hotel and a synagogue in Athens.
A year earlier, two Pakistani men were charged with plotting attacks on Israeli and Jewish sites in the city under Iranian direction.
The dismantling of Ammar’s network and the resulting diplomatic pressure, the Mossad said, marked a significant blow to Iran’s covert operations abroad, demonstrating what it called the Islamic Republic’s “repeated operational failures and growing international isolation.”
