Iran seizes assets of 394 people accused of spying for 'hostile enemy'

Iran has seized the assets of 394 people it accused of collaborating with the country’s adversaries during its wars with Israel and the United States and the January protests as Iranian authorities continue to expand a crackdown on individuals suspected of spying for foreign countries.

What happened: The semi-official Tasnim news agency cited Tehran prosecutor Ali Salehi on Tuesday as saying that the Iranian judiciary identified 2,191 bank accounts and seized 37 vehicles belonging to those individuals.

He described them as “counter-revolutionary elements” he accused of collaborating with “the hostile enemy and opposed the Iranian nation during the second and third imposed wars and last year’s unrest.”

Salehi did not identify those targeted or specify the value of the seized assets. It is also unclear when these measures were taken.

Iran’s judiciary announced last week that 240 properties, including 143 in Tehran, were confiscated. A total of 182 bank accounts were frozen, it said, accusing the targeted individuals of collaborating with the US and Israel, without providing further details on the cases.

Tasnim said some of the assets belonged to journalists working for foreign-based media outlets such as Iran International and Manoto.

Why it matters: Iranian authorities have been pursuing individuals accused of cooperating with the US and Israel since the war erupted on Feb. 28, accusing them of sowing chaos and seeking to undermine Iran’s national security.

Several actors, athletes and journalists have had their assets in Iran seized or frozen. Iranian activists abroad have also been targeted. In April, the Iranian judiciary ordered authorities to identify and seize the assets of 63 employees of the UK-based Iran International and 25 workers for Manoto, also based in the UK.

Also in April, the Iranian Independent Filmmakers Association, a network of hundreds of dissident and independent film industry members, said the Iranian government’s measures targeted 11 filmmakers, including Shirin Neshat, Hamid Farrokhnezhad and Niki Karimi, as part of its campaign to silence dissent.

Iran has also stepped up a mass arrest campaign since the war with the US and Israel began, arresting more than 6,500 people on suspicion of “treason and espionage,” the country’s police chief, Ahmadreza Radan, revealed in May.

Even before the war, Iranian authorities regularly arrested those suspected of spying for Israel, often without making evidence publicly available. As many as 21,000 people were arrested in Iran during the country’s 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, according to Iranian police.

Meanwhile, thousands of people are believed to have been arrested for participating in the anti-government protests that broke out in late December and early January throughout Iran. So far in 2026, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights has documented the execution of at least 570 people.

United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk revealed last month that at least 56 people have been executed in Iran on national security-related charges since March 19, including 27 in cases linked to protests at the start of the year.

Know more: The crackdown comes as tensions between Iran and the US have raised concerns of a renewed war in the region. The conflict had subsided after the two parties reached a memorandum of understanding on June 18 to end the war on all fronts, though sporadic exchanges of fire have continued.

Iran has escalated its rhetoric, warning against the resumption of US strikes over the past few days after the US State Department warned American citizens across the Middle East on Sunday of a possible escalation and US President Donald Trump cut short a weekend visit to the Camp David presidential retreat with no official explanation.

On Tuesday, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Iran will not surrender to pressure. “We will respond with power, just as we have done so far, and rendered the enemy incapable in all arenas,” he warned in a statement, while Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps spokesperson Brig. Gen. Hossein Mohibi vowed to deliver a “crushing response” should the US resume its attacks against Iran.