British-Azerbaijani national arrested for allegedly spying on airbase in Cyprus for Iran's IRGC

A dual British-Azerbaijani national, Rashad Sultanov, 44, was arrested in Cyprus on July 17 on suspicion of spying for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Sultanov, from Islington, north London, is accused of conducting hostile surveillance on Britain's RAF Akrotiri air base in Cyprus between May 11 and June 22 last year and sharing information with the IRGC. This arrest marks Britain's first overseas investigation under the National Security Act. Helen Flanagan, head of counter-terrorism policing in London, stated, "This case shows we are able to use the National Security Act overseas when British military bases are allegedly targeted by hostile state activity." Extradition proceedings are currently underway.