Kenya arrests Iranian terror suspects

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NAIROBI, Kenya, July 3 (UPI) -- Two Iranians arrested in Kenya who led authorities to a cache of explosives planned to attack Israeli, U.S., British or Saudi targets, officials said.

Suspects Ahmad Abolfathi Mohammad and Sayed Mansour Mousavi are believed to be members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards elite al-Quds force, the British newspaper The Telegraph reported Tuesday quoting Kenyan authorities.

A police source told the London daily the two were under surveillance as soon as they arrived in Kenya and were arrested June 19 in Nairobi.

"Our anti-terror officers were highly suspicious of them from the moment that they landed in country," a police officer told the paper. "From what we saw, their intention was clear to plan and execute terrorism attacks. I cannot say against which countries, it could be any target, from any country."

The Kenya radio station Capital FM said the two led authorities to a cache of 33 lbs of RDX explosives in Mombasa.

On June 27, the Iranians told a Kenyan court they had been tortured by Israeli agents while in police custody and demanded medical attention, the radio report said.

Nairobi's Senior Principal Magistrate Paul Biwott denied the two bail and ordered they be escorted to a hospital for treatment at their own cost and set the next court hearing for July 23, the radio said.

Monday, Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu accused Iran of being behind terror attacks in Africa, The Telegraph said.

"After Iran sent its agents to murder the Saudi ambassador on U.S. soil, the country has engaged in attacks in Azerbaijan, Bangkok, in Tbilisi, in New Delhi, and now we have just discovered a plot for a terrorist attack in Africa. The international community must fight against this major player in the world of terrorism," the paper quoted Netanyahu saying.