Israel Accuses Iran of Sending Hitman to Kill Israeli Businessmen

A Greek-Cypriot police officer stands guard. The alleged hitman was arrested on the Greek side of the ethnically divided Cyprus (AA)

Israel accused Iran of sending a hitman to Cyprus to kill Israeli businessmen last Wednesday. Cyprus police arrested a man in Nicosia on September 27 who was crossing from northern Cyprus (which is occupied by Turkey). According to Cypriot media, the 38-year-old Azerbaijani man with a Russian passport was found with a pistol and silencer in his rented vehicle. They determined he had been on the island for approximately 3 weeks before the arrest. 

Matan Sidi, the spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, claimed that the alleged hitman was a "terrorist incident directed by Iran against Israeli businesspeople living in Cyprus." Iran's Embassy in Nicosia responded to an emailed request for comment by Reuters, saying that "this regime [Israel] is always making such a baseless allegation [sic] against the Islamic Republic of Iran." 

The Times of Israel claimed that Cypriot-Israeli billionaire Teddy Sagi was the intended victim of the assassination plot due to his debts to Russian business partners. The Times also claimed that unspecified authorities believe the attempt was specifically directed at Sagi, and that Iran may not be connected to the attack in any way. However, according to Reuters, in his public statement, Sidi denied that the arrest was about Sagi in particular, and claimed instead that it was part of a larger terrorist plot by Iran. Cypriot and Israeli media sources conflict, with some arguing that the alleged assassin may have been targeting Sagi specifically, while others say that they were more generally targeting Israeli businessmen living in Cyprus. 

I24, an Israeli newspaper, claims that the assassination attempt was a retaliatory attack by Iran. They believe it was a response to Mossad allegedly kidnapping an Iranian general last month, in a search for more information about a missing Israeli fighter from 1986.

Private proceedings began on October 6 with no press or cameras allowed. Cypriot police requested an extension of the man's detention to October 11. They have not yet charged the suspect, and have not provided more details about his identity, other than to claim that he is being uncooperative. They have also been unable to determine where on the island he was staying, although authorities seem to believe that he was staying in the Turkish-controlled side of the ethnically divided island. 

Israel appeared to insinuate that Mossad or other services were involved in the arrest, with Foreign Minister Yair Lapid telling reporters: “The fact is that we’re there. We’re minding matters.”