TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have arrested a person accused of having a link to two French citizens being held on espionage charges, state television reported Thursday.
The report said the suspect was a Marxist who visited two French spies before the May 1 International Workers’ Day, as part of a plot to “create unrest among workers.”
It did not disclose the suspect’s gender, but said the person was arrested by intelligence services while trying to leave the country through West Azerbaijan Province. TV also said the accused was tasked with rallying workers and teachers for street protests.
In May, Iran confirmed it has detained two French citizens, Cecile Kohler, 37, and Chuck Paris, 69, saying they met with protesting teachers, took part in an anti-government rally, and were organizing a protest to create unrest in Iran.
France identified the two as a teachers’ union official and her partner who were on vacation in Iran.
Teachers have held several strikes and protests in cities across Iran in recent weeks, walking out of their classrooms to press for better pay and working conditions.
Iran arrests suspect allegedly plotting with French spy ring
https://arab.news/c53yk
Iran arrests suspect allegedly plotting with French spy ring
- Suspect was a Marxist who visited two French spies before the May 1 International Workers’ Day
Sudan paramilitary advances near Ethiopia border
- Sudan’s Kordofan region, where the SPLM-N has its other foothold in the Nuba Mountains, is currently the war’s fiercest battleground
KHARTOUM: Sudanese paramilitary forces have advanced on army positions near the southeastern border with Ethiopia, according to the group and an eyewitness who spoke to AFP Wednesday.
Control over Sudan’s southeastern Blue Nile State, bordering both Ethiopia and South Sudan, is split between the army and a faction of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, allies of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces.
In a statement released Tuesday, the SPLM-N, led by Abdelaziz Al-Hilu, said they had “liberated the strategic city of Deim Mansour and areas of Bashir Nuqu and Khor Al-Budi.”
Since April 2023, the Sudanese army has been at war with the RSF. In February of last year, the RSF announced a surprise alliance with the SPLM-N, securing experienced fighters, land and border access.
Deim Mansour lies between the SPLM-N stronghold Yabus, birthplace of their deputy commander Joseph Tuka, and the army-held town of Kurmuk, which hosts a large army contingent.
Babiker Khaled, who fled to Kurmuk, told AFP that SPLM-N fighters began amassing in the forests around Deim Mansour on Sunday.
“The shelling began on Monday, they entered the city on Tuesday,” he said, adding that “some people fled into Ethiopia, others arrived in Kurmuk.”
From its foothold in the southern Blue Nile, a thin strip of land jutting south between Ethiopia and South Sudan, the SPLM-N maintains reported supply lines from both countries, building on decades-old links.
Close to three years of war in Sudan have left tens of thousands dead and around 11 million displaced, creating the world’s largest hunger and displacement crises.
It has also torn the country apart, with the army holding the center, north and east of Sudan while the RSF and its allies dominate the west and parts of the south.
Sudan’s Kordofan region, where the SPLM-N has its other foothold in the Nuba Mountains, is currently the war’s fiercest battleground.
On Tuesday, the army broke a paramilitary siege on South Kordofan state capital Kadugli, days after breaking another on the nearby city of Dilling.
