The police in Greece arrested two suspects of Pakistani origin on suspicion of planning mass attacks against Jewish targets in the country, including the capital Athens.
This was published today (Tuesday) in the Greek media and also in some of the Western media.
According to the suspicion, the suspects were allegedly members of a larger terrorist network originating "overseas".
For now, the suspects are being held at the police headquarters in central Athens, it was reported.
In response to the publication in Greece, the Prime Minister's Office responded on behalf of the Mossad: "The affair that was revealed today in Greece is a serious affair that was successfully thwarted by the Greek security forces. This is another attempt by Iran to promote terrorism against Israeli and Jewish targets abroad."
"After the investigation of the suspects in Greece began, the Mossad assisted in an intelligence investigation of the infrastructure, the methods of operation, and the connection to Iran. As part of the investigation, it was revealed that the infrastructure that operated in Greece is part of a wide Iranian network that operates from Iran out in many countries. The Mossad, together with its partners in the community, operates by virtue of its role continuously To thwart terrorist attacks by Iran all over the globe," they added.
One of the targets was a Jewish synagogue in the center of Athens.
Archive photo (photo: Walla! system, Nimrod Ofran)
According to the various reports published today, the police anti-terrorism division and the National Intelligence Service of Greece were involved in the arrest, according to the police statement, and were assisted by an unnamed foreign intelligence service.
The local police said that the suspects chose a target with "high symbolic value", and that they made "final preparations" for the attack.
"Their aim was not only to cause the loss of the lives of innocent citizens, but also to undermine the sense of security in the country, while harming public institutions and threatening international relations (of Greece)," the police said in a statement.
The Greek news site "Katimarini" reported that one of the targets where the members of the squad planned to carry out the attack was a Jewish synagogue in the center of Athens.
It was also reported that the two arrested men are of Pakistani origin, while a third, a Pakistani of Iranian origin, was investigated on suspicion of possible links to "extremist" organizations in the Islamic Republic.
"The analysis of the captured information and the digital data revealed and confirmed that the members of the network had already chosen a building of special importance as the target for the attack. The team even conducted a preliminary tour of the area and received final instructions to carry out the attack," claimed the police.
It was also noted on the website that the investigation began after the arrest of Pakistani citizens in Cyprus in 2021, for attacking an Israeli target, and the arrest of Pakistani citizens in Turkey a year later who planned an attack against an Israeli target in Istanbul.
The two suspects have already appeared before a prosecutor in Athens and have been referred to an investigating judge.
Now, their investigations are ongoing.
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