World · India Bureau
Iran operative used coded jail calls to direct European terror plots
A US federal indictment has revealed that an Iran-backed operative imprisoned in Brooklyn coordinated terror attack plans across Europe and the United States using encrypted communications with family members. The accused and associates allegedly plotted nearly 20 attacks targeting Jewish communities, including a scheme against a British air base housing American forces.
LSN India ·
Federal prosecutors in New York have charged an Iran-linked operative with directing a coordinated terrorism campaign from his jail cell through coded telephone conversations with family members. According to the indictment, the accused used disguised language and cipher systems to communicate attack plans with co-conspirators while incarcerated in a Brooklyn detention facility.
One of the alleged plots targeted RAF Fairford, a Royal Air Force base in Gloucestershire that hosts United States military personnel and aircraft. Investigators say the operative provided detailed instructions for the operation despite being confined, demonstrating the extent of coordination with handlers abroad.
Prosecutors allege the defendant and at least two associates conspired to execute approximately 20 separate attacks aimed at Jewish targets across multiple European countries and the United States. The indictment suggests the planning extended over several months, with operational details transmitted through the coded calls to direct on-the-ground operatives.
The case highlights what US and international law enforcement officials describe as Iran's systematic efforts to orchestrate terror operations against Western interests and specific communities abroad. The use of family communications to circumvent prison security measures underscores the sophisticated counter-surveillance techniques employed by the accused and his network.