Police in Tehran say two suicide bombers were arrested last week in Qods, west of Tehran before they could carry out suicide attacks in the area.
Second Brigadier General Keyvan Zahiri, the police chief for west Tehran, in his remarks on Wednesday said that intelligence inputs about a possible suicide bombing targeting a religious center of Qods city were received by the police on November 16.
Police forces, he said, immediately formed teams and zeroed in on the hideouts of terrorists in less than 24 hours, arresting the main ringleader through a “surprise operation” early on November 17.
Two pistols, quantities of ammunition, three silencers, seven kilograms of explosive material, and a remote control were confiscated from the possession of the terrorist, said the commander, adding that his accomplice was arrested later that day.
The announcement comes amid a spate of terror attacks across the country in recent weeks, killing a number of policemen, paramilitary Basijis and civilians.
The spurt in violence comes in the backdrop of foreign-backed riots that erupted in mid-September following the death of a young woman in police custody.
In one of the terror attacks, heavily-armed terrorists opened indiscriminate fire at a busy roundabout in the southwestern city of Izeh in Khuzestan province on November 16, killing seven people – including security forces and civilians – and injuring several others.
There were also similar terror attacks in Isfahan and Mashhad, fatally targeting young Basiji members.
The terrorist acts came only three weeks after 15 pilgrims, including a woman and two children, were martyred and 19 others wounded in a terrorist attack on Shah Cheragh holy shrine in the city of Shiraz in Fars province.
The Daesh Takfiri terrorist group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement on the group's Telegram channel.
Meanwhile, Iran's judiciary spokesman Massoud Setayeshi said on Tuesday that 40 foreign nationals who were involved in recent riots have been arrested by security forces and will be tried in Iranian courts.
According to a statement by Iranian intelligence bodies, foreign terrorists and spy agencies have a key role in the riots which according to reports have claimed the lives of at least 50 security forces.
Police officer’s organs donated in western Iran
One of the latest martyrs of the riots was Colonel Tooraj Ardalan, a police officer who was serving in Baneh, Kordestan province.
He was declared brain dead on November 10 at a local hospital after being targeted with hand-made bombs and stones.
Ardalan’s family gave medical authorities in the province their consent on Wednesday to donate his organs.
He was a father of two and had just two years to reach retirement.