New intelligence exposes IRGC-linked network targeting Israeli, Western sites

New intelligence obtained by Iran International reveals the identities of operatives in an IRGC-linked espionage and assassination network, including a foreign cleric trained in Qom who allegedly coordinated attacks targeting Israeli and Western interests.

A European intelligence source provided Iran International with new details about the IRGC-linked espionage, sabotage and assassination network operating across several countries.

According to the source, the activities were overseen by an officer in the covert unit identified as Alireza Mohammadi, who allegedly operated under the alias Meghdad Hassani.

The source said Mohammadi recruited and directed individuals tasked with intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance against targets in Israel as well as US military installations in other countries.

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Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week publicly called for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen and urged an immediate ceasefire, his clearest intervention yet in the conflict and a sign Beijing is watching events closely.

Zineb Zineb Riboua, a research fellow at the Hudson Institute who specializes in Chinese influence in the Middle East and North Africa, told Eye for Iran that the broader significance of Operation Epic Fury—the US campaign against Ira—may lie in weakening China’s strategic position through its deep ties to the Islamic Republic.

“I am in the group of those who think it is about weakening China,” Riboua said. “I don't think the administration says it this way… but I think it's a very important one.”

Beijing forced into the open

For weeks, China had largely avoided direct public comment on the Hormuz crisis despite its dependence on Persian Gulf energy flows.

Riboua said Xi’s sudden remarks reflected Beijing’s anxiety and may also have exposed China’s limited leverage over Tehran.

“For a long time there was this assumption that the United States was in decline,” she said, adding that Xi’s intervention suggests Washington may be “breaking the status quo that benefited China.”

She added that Beijing remains dependent on US positions in the strait and may lack sufficient influence to pressure Tehran directly.

Why Iran matters to China

China remains a major buyer of Iranian crude and has long benefited from Tehran’s isolation.

“China benefited on three fronts,” Riboua said. “The first one is really the oil… It's 90% of Iran’s oil that goes to China and it goes with a discount.”

China is the world’s largest crude importer, bringing in roughly 11 million barrels per day, and is exposed to any disruption in Hormuz, through which about one-fifth of global consumption passes.

Chinese buyers reportedly took more than 80% of Iran’s exported crude in 2025, often at discounts of $8 to $10 below Brent, giving Beijing a valuable cheap supply.

Any prolonged US-Iran standoff or naval blockade in Hormuz could force China to replace cheaper Iranian oil with more expensive alternatives, while higher freight and insurance costs would add further pressure.

Riboua said Iran also serves as a testing ground for sanctions evasion and alternative financial channels.

“What the Islamic Republic was useful for China is really also the sanctions evasion laboratory.”

Chinese-linked networks have used front companies, ship-to-ship transfers, relabeled cargoes and alternative payment channels to keep Iranian oil flowing despite Western restrictions.

‘US trapped in Mideast’

Iran’s efforts to weaponize the Strait of Hormuz may also have hurt one of its own most important partners.

“The Islamic Republic thought that by weaponizing the Strait of Hormuz it could coerce the US president,” Riboua said. “But in the process, they've been hurting China.”

With China heavily reliant on regional energy flows, any prolonged disruption raises the stakes for Beijing.

Riboua argued the wider contest remains centered on Asia.

“You want the Americans to be trapped in the Middle East,” she said. “That’s a perfect scenario when you're thinking about invading Taiwan.”

If Riboua is right, Operation Epic Fury may prove to be more than a campaign to curb Iran. It may mark an early move in a broader contest over China’s reach in the Middle East—and beyond.

Magomed-Husejn Dovtaev, a 33-year-old Austrian national of Chechen origin, was freed last week after serving around 28 months of his sentence and returned to Austria, where authorities have indicated they will take no further action.

According to records cited by The Sunday Times, Dovtaev told a parole hearing he had been offered €50,000 to carry out reconnaissance on the broadcaster’s London office, describing the task as an opportunity “to make easy money.”

He admitted that the information he gathered could have been used to facilitate a potential terrorist attack, though the police were unable to prove who had tasked him with the operation despite strongly suspecting he was acting on the orders of Iran, according to The Times.

Dovtaev was arrested in February 2023 after filming security arrangements at Iran International’s headquarters at Chiswick Business Park. He was later charged with a single count of attempting to collect information "likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism."

During the course of the trial, the police released footage of Dovtaev gathering information around the office building that housed Iran International and recording videos of the area.

Prosecutors said Dovtaev covertly filmed material on his phone in order to "identify vulnerabilities" in the media company's security which could be exploited by others for terrorism.

During a hearing on March 19, 2026, "Dovtaev told the panel that he had been given an opportunity to make ‘easy money’, where he would be paid fifty-thousand euros [£43,347] to go to the [Iran International] building and undertake reconnaissance because two business partners were in dispute.”

“Mr Dovtaev has accepted that it was likely he was being used to gather intelligence on the security situation at the building, with a possible terrorist attack to follow," according to a summary of the hearing reviewed by The Times.

After the hearing, the parole panel concluded he no longer posed a risk to the public, noting his actions were driven by “greed” and “recklessness” rather than ideology.

Threats continue

On February 18, 2023, a week after Dovtaev's arrest, Iran International announced that it decided to temporarily move its studio operations to the United States upon the order of UK anti-terrorism officials.

After months of hiatus in broadcasting from the UK due to terrorist threats by Tehran, the network resumed operations from a new London building on September 25, 2023.

However, an incident earlier this month showed the network remains under threat.

On April 17, 2026, British police charged three people over an attempted arson attack near the London offices of Iran International.

Police said a burning container was thrown towards the broadcaster’s headquarters in north-west London. No one was injured, but the case has added to concerns about the safety of Persian-language media in Britain.

In a separate case on April 18, Iran International received reports that an Iranian man was violently assaulted in central London. The Metropolitan Police are understood to be investigating.

The cases have drawn renewed attention to concerns among British officials over the use of criminal proxies by foreign states, including Iran, to carry out surveillance and attacks while maintaining plausible deniability.

On Thursday, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer voiced concern over Tehran’s activities in the United Kingdom, saying he was “very worried” about the increasing use of proxies by foreign states including the Islamic Republic.

He pledged to introduce legislation to proscribe Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the next parliamentary session. “We go into a new session in a few weeks' time, and we'll bring that legislation forward."

Starmer said legislation would be brought forward “in a few weeks” as parliament reconvenes.

“In relation to malign state actors more generally, proscription, we do need legislation in order to take necessary measures, and that is legislation that we're bringing forward as soon as we can.”

“We go into a new session in a few weeks' time, and we'll bring that legislation forward,” he said.

He also voiced concern over Tehran’s activities in the United Kingdom, saying he was “very worried” about the increasing use of proxies by the Islamic Republic.

Starmer made the remarks during a solidarity trip to Kenton United Synagogue on Thursday.

The visit came on the eve of the court appearance of two men accused of spying on Jewish and Israeli targets in London on behalf of the Iranian intelligence.

Nematollah Shahsavani, 40, and Alireza Farasati, 22, face charges under the UK’s National Security Act of engaging in conduct likely to assist a foreign intelligence service. Prosecutors allege the activity was carried out for Iran.

Growing threats

Starmer's pledge to ban Iran's IRGC comes at a time of growing concern about threats, intimidation, and violence affecting people linked to Iran in Britain.

On April 18, Iran International received reports that an Iranian man was violently assaulted in central London. The Metropolitan Police are understood to be investigating.

On April 17, British police charged three people over an attempted arson attack near the London offices of Iran International.

Police said a burning container was thrown towards the broadcaster’s headquarters in north-west London. No one was injured, but the case has added to concerns about the safety of Persian-language media in Britain.

Before that, in March 2026, an Iran-aligned group was reported to have claimed responsibility for an arson attack on Jewish ambulances in Golders Green, north London.

In May 2025, three Iranian men were charged under the National Security Act after a major counter-terrorism investigation. Prosecutors said one of the men had carried out surveillance, reconnaissance, and online research with the aim of committing serious violence against a person in the UK.

The other two were accused of similar activity intended to help others carry out serious violence. The Home Secretary said the case was part of a broader response to threats linked to the Iranian state.

British authorities have warned for several years that Iran poses a serious threat on UK soil.

Ghalibaf was reprimanded for attempting to include the nuclear issue in talks with Washington and was forced to resign, according to the sources.

A possible shake-up has been floated, with hardline politician Saeed Jalili potentially replacing Ghalibaf as head of the negotiating team.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is also seeking to take over the negotiations, sources said.