US forms new coalition to secure Hormuz, asks partners to join

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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According to information obtained by Iran International, one operative allegedly working under Mohammadi’s supervision is Elshad Hajiyev, a 37-year-old citizen of a neighboring country also known as Akram Haji-Zadeh.

Haji-Zadeh is said to have studied as a cleric at Al-Mustafa International University in Qom, an institution sanctioned by the US Treasury in 2020 for being "used as a recruitment platform by the IRGC-QF for intelligence collection and operations, including recruitment for the IRGC-QF-led foreign militias."

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The European intelligence source told Iran International that Haji-Zadeh played a leading role in a cell recently dismantled in a neighboring country. Mossad has separately announced that it dismantled what it described as an Iranian-linked network in one of Iran’s neighboring states.

According to the source, the network’s alleged targets included an oil pipeline, a synagogue, the Israeli embassy and prominent members of the Jewish community. In April 2024, Haji-Zadeh appeared twice as a guest on the television program Helal, broadcast on Iran’s Channel One and produced in cooperation with Al-Mustafa.

Israeli and Western intelligence officials have in recent years alleged that members or affiliates of Al-Mustafa have been involved in covert operations in countries including Senegal, Uganda and elsewhere in Africa.

A wider campaign against Unit 4000

The alleged disruption of the network comes amid what appears to be an escalating Israeli campaign against IRGC intelligence and sabotage units over the past six weeks.

These groups were reportedly overseen by Majid Khademi, head of IRGC Intelligence, who was killed on April 6 in what Israeli officials described as a targeted strike.

Last week, Mossad, Shin Bet and the Israeli military said they had killed Rahman Moghaddam, head of the Special Operations Department of the IRGC Intelligence Organization—known as Unit 4000—along with two other members of the unit in the early days of strikes on Iran.

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A source inside Iran told Iran International that Moghaddam—previously deputy coordinator of intelligence protection at Iran’s Ministry of Defense—was killed around midday on March 3 in a strike on a residential tower in Tehran’s Kowsar Complex on Artesh Boulevard.

Another senior figure, Mohsen Souri, who Israeli officials say was involved in training local cells outside Iran, was also reportedly killed.

Mossad and Shin Bet said they located his safe house and killed him along with other IRGC members in what they described as a precise intelligence operation. On March 30, Iranian state media outlets IRNA and Tasnim published footage of his funeral in Karaj without mentioning his alleged role.

Another alleged Unit 4000 operative, Mehdi Yekeh-Dehghan—known as “Doctor”—was also reportedly killed in a separate operation. Israeli officials say he was responsible for operations in Turkey and for transferring suicide drones to Cyprus.

According to intelligence cited by prosecutors in Turkey, Yekeh-Dehghan and another Iranian officer, Najaf Rostami, were linked to a network accused of planning surveillance and possible attacks on the US airbase at Incirlik.

On January 29, Turkish authorities arrested six people accused of spying for Iranian intelligence. One of them, Ashkan Jalali, was accused of attempting to smuggle armed drones to Cyprus through his companies.

In recent years, Israel has repeatedly claimed to have disrupted IRGC and Quds Force plots abroad through intelligence operations and targeted killings.

If confirmed, the latest allegations would suggest Israel’s recent campaign has extended beyond missile sites and military commanders into the covert infrastructure Iran has built overseas over years.

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."

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Islamabad on Saturday, where he met Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and army chief Asim Munir as Pakistan continued efforts to mediate between Tehran and Washington.

A Pakistani source involved in the talks told Reuters that Araghchi conveyed Tehran’s demands and concerns about US positions during the visit. Iranian state media also said he delivered Iran’s response to proposals in a meeting with Munir before leaving Islamabad for Oman and Russia.

Iranian officials had earlier said Araghchi had no plan to meet US officials in Pakistan.

Lake, a journalist at The Free Press and host of the Breaking History podcast, told Eye for Iran that the Islamic Republic is seeking negotiations as a lifeline after major military, economic and political setbacks.

“Their backs are against the wall and these negotiations they hope are going to be a lifeline,” Lake said.

But he argued that any renewed diplomatic track should begin with pressure on Tehran over the Iranian people.

“If I was Vice President Vance, I would say… the first thing I’d say is, you need to turn back on the internet if you’re going to get these financial lifelines. You need to release political prisoners,” Lake said.

He added that Washington should also demand an end to executions.

The remarks come as Iran’s internet blackout has entered its 57th day, according to NetBlocks, with international connectivity still largely severed amid worsening conditions inside the country.

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Lake said the US should recognize that “our best allies are the Iranian people on the ground,” and warned against strikes on civilian infrastructure such as power plants, saying they would hurt ordinary Iranians more than the Islamic Republic.

The diplomatic maneuvering has also unfolded amid signs of deepening disagreement inside Tehran. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the parliament speaker, has stepped down as head of Iran’s negotiating team amid internal disputes, with Saeed Jalili floated as a possible replacement and Araghchi seeking greater control of the talks.

Lake said he believes the fractures inside the Islamic Republic are genuine.

“At the end of the day, with enough pressure, they’re probably going to start turning on each other,” he said.

He argued that the Islamic Republic has lost legitimacy and that Iran’s future will ultimately be decided by Iranians themselves.

“You cannot keep these people down,” Lake said..

Jafar Tafakori, 57, was arrested in Colombia at the request of US authorities and is accused of arranging the movement of mainly Iranian nationals through South and Central America and Mexico to the US border.

According to the indictment, the alleged scheme ran from late 2022 to mid-2024 and involved providing transport, shelter and, in some cases, airline tickets for migrants, charging fees of up to $30,000 per person.

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Prosecutors said migrants were directed to enter the United States illegally once they reached the border. Tafakori faces one count of conspiracy and five counts of bringing migrants into the United States for financial gain.

If convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison per count, with a potential mandatory minimum sentence if found guilty on multiple counts.

US officials said the arrest reflects efforts to target transnational smuggling networks operating across multiple countries.