An IRGC commander says "more than 1000 terrorist conspiracies have been thwarted within a month."
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps "ground operations chief" Morteza Mirian said on Thursday October 11 that in one case "enemies" have spent "about 20 million dollars" to ship a bomb "from the East" and detonate it in Tehran, Mehr news agency quoted him as saying.
This sounds like an incredible scenario. If 1,000 operations were being planned, it would have probably involved thousands of “terrorists”, which would mean many of them were already in Iran. In such a case, how did they enter the country and who has such a large force focused on Iran.
He also said that a Mullah Mohamad Shahi had issued a "jihadi fatwa" to disrupt the religious ceremonies in September. However, he did not elaborate further on the man's identity or whereabouts, although he must have been a top cleric to be in a position to issue such a fatwa or religious decree.
IRGC commanders and other Iranian security officials usually make big claims about successful operations after a major breach of security. IRGC failed to protect a military parade that was attacked by terrorists in Ahvaz on September 22 as some members of the Iranian Parliament (Majles) have charged.
Other reasons for making often overstated or bogus claims include, milking the government for more budget and frightening individuals and small groups that might be planning some form of violent operations.
According to Mehr, Mirian who was speaking on the Iranian state-run radio, also said that "suicide bombers have tried to drive explosive-loaded trucks into Tehran during the month of Muharram" when Shi'ite Muslims take part in religious processions.
He said the plot "was somehow thwarted," without elaborating on who were involved.
Other Iranian officials had also talked about plots to attack religious ceremonies during the past year, but "over a thousand plots" is exceptionally unusual.
In the meantime, two other higher ranking military commanders also talked about security threats on Thursday.
Chief of the Joint Staff of the Iranian armed forces General Mohammad Baqeri said Iran was confronting a "heavy offensive in the area of soft war" because of what he called "the enemies' semi-hard intelligence activities," possibly a layman's description of hybrid warfare.
Speaking in Kermanshah, Baqeri warned "counter-revolutionaries" that "the nation will not continue to remain silent in the face of insecurity."
Iranian officials' obsession and preoccupation with counter-revolutionaries continue while this year marks the 40thanniversary of the Islamic revolution which has left a legacy of financial corruption, mismanagement and social injustice while the revolution itself appears to have run out of steam, and according to the parliament members, fewer people are now saying prayers than before.
Intermittent mass protests have shaken the Islamic regime in 2018, as economic conditions have worsened. Fear of a mass insurrection could be one reason security officials want to appear strong and capable of dealing with threats.
In another development, IRGC Deputy Commander Hossein Salami, said on Wednesday "There is a widespread coalition of enemies against the country's security," although elsewhere in his speech in Shiraz he praised the country for being in its "best state in 40 years."
"All the powers in the world are working together to disrupt our security," Salami said.
The remarks about security, have been made on the occasion of "the police week," an event to pay tribute to the country's law enforcement organs, which could be yet another reason to talk about successful operations in confronting with terrorism.
