Iran has gained access to a batch of electronic devices and storage equipment confiscated during a recent search operation conducted by Albanian police at a camp belonging to the Mujahedin-e-Khalq terrorist organization (MKO), an Iranian government official has said.
Sepehr Khalaji, the head of the Iranian government’s information council, tweeted on Monday that a shipment containing hard drives and computer cases belonging to the MKO had arrived in Iran.
Iranian experts are currently engaged in data retrieval from these devices and identifying the terrorist group’s connections and sabotage cells, he added.
“The results have been promising so far,” the official said.
The MKO has carried out numerous terrorist attacks against Iranian civilians and government officials since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Out of the nearly 17,000 Iranians killed in terrorist attacks over the past four decades, about 12,000 have fallen victim to the MKO’s acts of terror.
Albanian police forces entered the MKO camp, known as Ashraf-3, in the northwestern region of the capital, Tirana, on June 20 due to its engagement in “terror and cyber attacks” against foreign institutions.
Authorities seized 150 computer devices linked to terrorist activities. At least one person was killed and dozens of others were injured during the clashes at the camp.
More than a week later, police in Albania entered the Ashraf-3 camp again and security forces were deployed at the entrance to the camp and controlled all vehicles leaving the site.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Iran’s Intelligence Ministry said it is seriously pursuing terrorists beyond the country’s borders, following a string of successful operations that led to the arrest of individuals affiliated with the MKO.
The statement said that the intelligence ministry has consistently warned European intelligence and security services about the MKO’s ongoing terrorist activities, particularly from their main base in Albania and other Western countries.
The Albanian prime minister says the MKO group must leave Tirana if it wants to use the country
In an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel published on Friday, Albania’s Prime Minister Edi Rama also said that the MKO members must leave the country if the group wants to use Albanian soil to fight against Iran.