Iranian authorities announced on Saturday that they had arrested members of the Bahai minority, accusing them of involvement in what the regime calls “riots," AFP reported, citing Iran’s Tasnim news agency.
The arrests come in the aftermath of the nationwide protests that swept the country in recent months.
The Bahais, Iran’s largest non‑Muslim religious minority, have long faced persecution and crackdowns, and the Islamic Republic routinely accuses them of spying for Israel.
Tasnim quoted the intelligence ministry as saying, “A 32-member network of the Bahai espionage cult who were active in the riots and acts of vandalism were identified, and 12 main agents were arrested, and 13 were summoned."
The ministry claimed the network operated across the country, including in Tehran, and that “their main hideout was located in Mashhad" in eastern Iran.
The Islamic Republic considers the Bahai faith a heretical offshoot of Islam and accuses its followers of ties to Israel, because a main Bahai shrine is located in the northern Israeli city of Haifa.
In 2022, Iranian security forces in northern Iran arrested 12 followers of the Bahai faith and accused them of being "Zionist spies".
In 2013, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a fatwa, urged Iranians to avoid all dealings with members of the banned Bahai sect.
Two years later, the US Senate condemned Iran’s persecution of the Bahai and urged Iran to free jailed members of the Bahai faith.
The latest arrests come as Iran experienced weeks of unrest driven by anger over economic hardship, which escalated into the largest protests against the regime in more than three years. The demonstrations have since subsided following a harsh crackdown that rights groups say left thousands dead.
The number of Bahais still living in Iran is unclear, though supporters estimate the community may still number several hundred thousand.