Iran Exploited Gulf Waters to Extract Fugitives, Smuggle Arms

The photo above shows then Defense Secretary William Perry, center, listening to then Saudi ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, left, at the blast site on June 29, 1996, Getty Images
The photo above shows then Defense Secretary William Perry, center, listening to then Saudi ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, left, at the blast site on June 29, 1996, Getty Images
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Iran Exploited Gulf Waters to Extract Fugitives, Smuggle Arms

The photo above shows then Defense Secretary William Perry, center, listening to then Saudi ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, left, at the blast site on June 29, 1996, Getty Images
The photo above shows then Defense Secretary William Perry, center, listening to then Saudi ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, left, at the blast site on June 29, 1996, Getty Images

Saudi investigations showed that a terror ring of five members linked to the architect of the Khobar tower attack, Ahmed Ibrahim Al-Mughassil, have revealed crucial intel on the arms and drug trafficking industry in the kingdom’s eastern province, Qatif.

Mughassil was given asylum by Iran for some 19 years—however now is in Saudi custody.

According to confessions of the five, arms smuggled into Saudi Arabia and handed over to armed groups in Qatif province came en route Arabian Gulf waters.

Weapons were being trafficked in by Iranian vessels, and were under Mughassil’s direct supervision.
The mastermind of the Khobar bombings is accredited to plotting one of the most violent terrorist and devastating terror attacks against American missions on foreign territory.

Not only did Iranian authorities arm terrorist groups in Qatif, but also contributed to aiding fugitives wanted in Saudi Arabia providing them with means to escape by sea and securing them asylum.

Investigations filed to Saudi Public Prosecution against the five suspects stand as evidence to the full-fledged support Iran gives to terrorists compromising Saudi national security.

Charges pressed against the five defendants involve the illicit purchase of a naval vessel from Bahrain-based parties, worth an estimated 70,000 riyals, to smuggle weapons into Saudi Arabia.

The five are also believed to hide information on escaping fugitives and participating as naval mercenaries in the Arabian Gulf.

Their tasks involved providing direct aid to those trying to escape the law in Saudi Arabia and arming Qatif-based extremists with weapons.

Interrogation details added that the suspects face charges of conspiring against regional stability, and advancing Iran’s expansionist agenda, for having withheld vital information on arms smuggling into the kingdom.

A few days ago, Saudi General Prosecution uncovered the way Iran planned to revive “Hezbollah al-Hejaz” through a case filed against five Saudis it accused of being trained on weapons inside the Iranian Revolutionary Guards camps.

The five Saudis, who can be described as “Iran’s powerful men in Saudi Arabia,” were also trained on the use of RPGs, which were also used lately by terrorists in the Awamiya town.

In addition, the five suspects are accused of receiving trainings on the use of other explosives, including TNT, RDX, C4 and others.



Iranian Official Says Verified Deaths in Iran Protests Reaches at Least 5,000

10 January 2026, Iran, Tehran: A police station is set on fire during protests in Tehran in response to worsening economic conditions. ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
10 January 2026, Iran, Tehran: A police station is set on fire during protests in Tehran in response to worsening economic conditions. ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
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Iranian Official Says Verified Deaths in Iran Protests Reaches at Least 5,000

10 January 2026, Iran, Tehran: A police station is set on fire during protests in Tehran in response to worsening economic conditions. ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
10 January 2026, Iran, Tehran: A police station is set on fire during protests in Tehran in response to worsening economic conditions. ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

An Iranian official in the region said on Sunday the authorities had verified at least 5,000 people had been killed in protests in Iran, including about 500 security personnel, blaming "terrorists and armed rioters" for killing "innocent Iranians".

The official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, also told Reuters ‌some of ‌the heaviest clashes and ‌highest ⁠number of ‌deaths were in the Iranian Kurdish areas in northwest Iran, a region where Kurdish separatists have been active and where flare-ups have been among the most violent in past periods of unrest.

"The final ⁠toll is not expected to increase sharply," ‌the official said, adding that "Israel ‍and armed ‍groups abroad" had supported and equipped those ‍taking to the streets.

The Iranians authorities regularly blame unrest on foreign enemies, including Israel, an arch foe of the country which launched military strikes on Iran in June.

The US-based HRANA ⁠rights group said on Saturday the death toll had reached 3,308, with another 4,382 cases under review. The group said it had confirmed more than 24,000 arrests.

The Iranian Kurdish rights group Hengaw, based in Norway, has said some of the heaviest clashes during protests that erupted in late December were ‌in Kurdish areas in the northwest.


Pakistan Security Forces Kill 12 Militants, Thwarting Attempted Hostage-taking in Southwest

File photo: Pakistani Army and security officials stand guard as the opposition party Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaft (PTI) continue their protest for the third day demanding release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, 06 October 2024. EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD
File photo: Pakistani Army and security officials stand guard as the opposition party Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaft (PTI) continue their protest for the third day demanding release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, 06 October 2024. EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD
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Pakistan Security Forces Kill 12 Militants, Thwarting Attempted Hostage-taking in Southwest

File photo: Pakistani Army and security officials stand guard as the opposition party Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaft (PTI) continue their protest for the third day demanding release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, 06 October 2024. EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD
File photo: Pakistani Army and security officials stand guard as the opposition party Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaft (PTI) continue their protest for the third day demanding release of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, in Islamabad, Pakistan, 06 October 2024. EPA/SOHAIL SHAHZAD

Pakistani security forces killed at least 12 militants and thwarted an attempted hostage-taking in southwestern Pakistan after assailants attacked a police station, the military said Friday.

In a statement, it said the attackers also targeted two banks and looted millions of rupees (dollars) during the assault in Kharan district of Balochistan province a day earlier. The militants attempted to seize hostages at the police station, but a swift response by security forces forced them to retreat, it said.

The military identified the assailants as “Fitna al-Hindustan,” a phrase the government uses for the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army, or BLA, and other separatist groups. It claimed the attackers, including those killed in the shootouts with security forces, were backed by India, though it provided no evidence. India has repeatedly denied Pakistan’s accusations that it supports separatists in Balochistan or Pakistani Taliban fighters.

Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in a statement praised the security forces for killing the militants and foiling the attacks by the insurgents in Kharan, reported The Associated Press.

Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least populated province, has long been the scene of insurgency by separatist groups, along with attacks by the Pakistani Taliban. The BLA, which the United States designated a terrorist organization in 2019, has been behind numerous attacks targeting security forces and civilians across the province in recent years.


Massive Fire at a Shopping Mall in Southern Pakistan, Kills 3 People

People gather as firefighters try to control a massive fire that broke out in a multi-story shopping mall, in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammad Farooq)
People gather as firefighters try to control a massive fire that broke out in a multi-story shopping mall, in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammad Farooq)
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Massive Fire at a Shopping Mall in Southern Pakistan, Kills 3 People

People gather as firefighters try to control a massive fire that broke out in a multi-story shopping mall, in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammad Farooq)
People gather as firefighters try to control a massive fire that broke out in a multi-story shopping mall, in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammad Farooq)

A massive fire swept through a multistory shopping mall in Pakistan’s largest southern city of Karachi late Saturday, killing at least three people and injuring about a dozen others, police and rescue officials said.

Firefighters and rescue workers rushed to the Gul Plaza shortly after 10 p.m. local time following reports of the blaze, police and rescuer officials said. According to the local media, most shop owners were closing their stores or had already left when the fire broke out and spread quickly, The Associated Press said.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Police said an investigation would be launched once the blaze was extinguished. However, most structures in Karachi, and other parts of the country, lack fire prevention and firefighting systems, which often results in damages and casualties.

TV footage showed firefighters in protective gear battling the flames. Several fire trucks used ladders, water cannons and hoses to douse the building’s floors, where flames shot out of windows and balconies. Thick black smoke billowed into the night sky and was visible from several blocks away, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene.

Authorities said the fire spread rapidly after erupting in an area of the mall where shopkeepers had stored imported garments, clothing and plastic household goods, which helped fuel the flames.

Karachi is the capital of southern Sindh province, where such incidents are common. In November 2023, a fire tore through a shopping mall in the city, killing 10 people and injuring 22 others.