'Kazmi made calls to over a dozen phones in Iran'

The 50-year-old freelance journalist arrested for his alleged role in the “international conspiracy” to target Israeli diplomats that unfolded on the capital’s streets last month had been making calls to more than two dozen Iran-based telephone numbers, sources have said.

The 50-year-old freelance journalist arrested for his alleged role in the “international conspiracy” to target Israeli diplomats that unfolded on the capital’s streets last month had been making calls to more than two dozen Iran-based telephone numbers, sources have said.

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According to police, one of the numbers belonged to the alleged mastermind of the conspiracy, while another was being used by the man who executed the attack that had caused Tel-Yehoshua Koren’s Israeli embassy-owned Innova vehicle to go up in flames on February 13.

“So far, we have been able to uncover technical evidence linking Mohammed Ahmad Kazmi’s telephonic contact through his Iranian SIM card with 14 Tehran-based telephone numbers,” said a senior officer.

“One belonged to Seyed Ali Mehdiansadr and another was used by Houshang Irani — the man who executed the attack. We are in the process of finding out how many more of the module’s members were in touch with Kazmi the same way.”

On March 19, Hindustan Times had reported how Kazmi, arrested by the special team from his Jor Bagh residence on March 6, had been using a cellular phone-based Closed User Group to be in touch with his handlers for more than a year.

SIM cards bought in Tehran, the sources claimed, were also found on Moradi Saeid and Mohd Khazaei — the two men of Iranian origin arrested from Bangkok after a similar terror bid failed at the Thai capital on February 14.

“Diplomatic channels may have been used to smuggle the bomb into the country one piece at a time,” the officer said.

The police have completed the paperwork needed to issue Red Corner notices in the names of Seyed Ali Mehdiansadr, Mohammadreza Abolghasemi, Houshang Afsar Irani and Sedaghatzadeh Masoud. The notices are likely to come into effect by Thursday.