As the investigation deepens into an Iranian spy ring found to be operating in the eastern province of Iğdır, bordering Iran, a strong link has emerged between Iranian intelligence and the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), with new evidence seized by the Turkish police and intelligence agencies being shared with the Erzurum court responsible for the case.
The Iğdır Governor's Office announced in a written statement on Wednesday that police had detained in simultaneous operations eight Turkish suspects on charges of spying for Iranian intelligence. The arrests stem from the expansion of an investigation by police after the arrest of two Iranian citizens and one Turkish citizen on Aug. 19, 2011, all of whom were found in possession of digital recorders with information on state security.
The suspects were detained under Article 327 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), which criminalizes the acquisition of information on state security by unauthorized individuals.
The detainees appeared before the Erzurum court on Friday to make their defense to the head judge. However, no public statement had yet been issued by the time Today's Zaman went to print.
The details are beginning to come to the surface as the investigation, launched by the Erzurum Prosecutor's Office into the suspected spies operating on behalf of Iranian intelligence agency VEVAK, continues. Reports forwarded by the National Intelligence Agency (MİT) to the court disclose the plans of the 10 alleged spies.
Turkish media reported on Wednesday that police had seized a Kalashnikov rifle, a shotgun, video records and secret correspondence between the suspects and Iranian intelligence officials. There were also records of phone conversations they had had with Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) terrorists.
According to security sources, the group had plans to foment an uprising among the Kurdish population in southern and southeastern Turkey, especially in provinces of Iğdır and Kars. The suspects face accusations of obtaining information on military personnel, the positions of troops in eastern Turkey, official buildings and the Syrian opposition to share with Iranian intelligence.
Police are strongly considering the existence of a link between the suspects and attacks on the offices of the Iğdır Police Department in November 2011 and July 2012.
The Bugün daily reported on Friday that the Iranian spies had recorded the positions of public buildings, including police departments, government offices and gendarmerie commands, in GPS devices. The same daily further claimed that PKK terrorists had used the intelligence provided by these spies via GPS devices when they launched an attack on an Iğdır police station with rocket-propelled grenades.
The revelation of the spy ring is another heavy blow to the already strained relations between Turkey and Iran, amid a deepening rift over how to respond to the unfolding Syrian conflict.
In the meantime, the Iranian embassy denies claims there are Iranian nationals among the detainees in the spy investigation. In a written statement, the embassy strongly refutes such claims, addressing the strong base of brotherhood between the people of the two countries. Additionally, the statement notes that the embassy has requested further information from the Turkish Foreign Affairs Ministry on the ongoing spy probe.
Nearly 100 Iranian spies operate in Turkey's Southeast
As the investigation into the alleged spies who work for Iranian intelligence is still underway, police now closely monitor who they believe to be nearly 100 agents sent by Iran to gather intelligence in eastern and southeastern Turkey.
According to information obtained by Today's Zaman from police sources, those agents, who present themselves as journalists or embassy staff, are in regular contact with and coordinate with senior PKK commanders in the region.
