Iran says 10 foreign intelligence services behind recent unrest

Vehicles damaged during the recent unrest are pictured in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 21, 2026. (Xinhua/Shadati)

TEHRAN, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said Friday that 10 foreign intelligence services were behind recent "terrorist" incidents in the country.

In a statement on its official outlet Sepah News, the IRGC described the incidents as part of a failed "U.S.-Israeli plan" to threaten Iran's territorial and national integrity. It said a foreign "command room" was set up after a 12-day conflict in June to create internal chaos, provoke military intervention, and mobilize groups seen as a threat, without providing evidence.

The IRGC said it had disrupted the plots from June through late December, detaining 735 people linked to "anti-security networks," guiding 11,000 "vulnerable individuals," and seizing 743 illegal weapons.

Vehicles damaged during the recent unrest are pictured in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 21, 2026. (Xinhua/Shadati)

Separately, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called the unrest a "quasi-coup" backed by the United States and Israel, according to the official IRNA news agency. He made the remarks during a Thursday call with his Turkish counterpart Numan Kurtulmus, in which he thanked Türkiye for its policy of non-interference in Iran's domestic affairs.

Protests erupted across Iran last month over economic grievances before taking on a political dimension and turning violent, leading to casualties and widespread damage to public property, mosques, government buildings, and banks. Iranian authorities have blamed the United States and Israel for inciting the unrest.