Israel points to Quds Force being behind terror plot

People walk past the entrance of an Israeli restaurant, following the arrest by Greek police of two suspected members of a group that was planning an attack against the restaurant, in Athens, Greece, on March 29, 2023. [Louiza Vradi/Reuters]

Israeli media report that high-ranking officials in their country have pointed to the Quds Force, one of five branches of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), specializing in unconventional warfare and military intelligence, is behind the foiled plot to bomb a Jewish restaurant and an attached cultural and religious center in Athens.

Israelis say a 65-year-old Pakistani national, operating out of the city of Qom, some 150 kilometers south of Tehran, working on behalf of the IRGC, directed two compatriots living in Greece to recruit non-Iranian nationals to carry out the attacks, offering €15,000 for every victim of the attack.

The 65-year-old, who has been named as Syed Hakar, is allegedly wanted in Pakistan for multiple murders.

The Iranian Embassy in Athens has strongly denied allegations of an Iranian connection to the terrorist plot, calling...

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