Iran executes alleged spies

Iran's state radio reported Sunday that authorities had executed two men by hanging, one found guilty of spying for Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad, and the other for the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Mohammad Heydari was convicted of "receiving payment to provide intelligence on various security issues and national secrets in repeated meetings with the Mossad," a statement from the Tehran prosecutor's office said.

Koroush Ahmadi was found guilty of "providing intelligence on various issues to the CIA."

The statement did not say where the two were hanged or when the men were arrested or tried. It reported that their death sentences were carried out after approval by the Supreme Court.

Iran occasionally announces that it has dismantled international spying networks in the country and arrested individuals on espionage charges.

Iran accuses Israel and the US, its primary foes, of spying on its vital interests, particularly its nuclear program, which some countries suspect is aimed at producing an atomic weapon. Tehran denies the charge.

Last month, Amnesty International reported that Iran had 314 officially confirmed executions in 2012, the second highest behind China. The organization said that the actual number was almost certainly higher.

Iran has announced a string of arrests of alleged agents in recent years. In May 2012, Iran executed Majid Jamali Fashi after convicting him of spying for the Mossad and of playing a key role in the January 2010 assassination of a top nuclear scientist in return for payment.

The country is also still holding Amir Mirzai Hekmati, a US-Iranian national and former Marine whom it accuses of being a CIA operative. Both the United States and his family have vigorously denied these claims.

hc/mg (AFP, AP, dpa)