British police have announced the arrest of a dual British-Azerbaijani national in Cyprus on suspicion of spying for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
According to London’s Metropolitan Police, Rashad Sultanov, 44, a resident of North London, was arrested in Cyprus on July 17 and remains in custody while awaiting extradition proceedings to the United Kingdom. British media outlets report that Sultanov worked as a minicab driver in London.
UK authorities accuse Sultanov of conducting covert reconnaissance and gathering intelligence on the Royal Air Force (RAF) base at Akrotiri in Cyprus between May 11 and June 22, 2025, before passing the information to the IRGC. Counter-terrorism police described the activity as “hostile surveillance.”
The case represents the UK’s first extraterritorial investigation conducted under its updated National Security Act. London’s Counter Terrorism Command noted that the law permits enforcement action outside UK territory when hostile foreign-state activities target British interests or sovereign infrastructure.
RAF Akrotiri is one of two British Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus and serves as a vital strategic hub for UK military operations across the Middle East. British fighter jets stationed at the base have previously carried out strike missions against ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria, as well as strikes against Houthi assets in Yemen.
