Albania Expels Iranian Agents For Planning Terrorist Attacks Against Israelis

The government of Albania has expelled two Iranians for allegedly planning to carry out terrorist attacks in the country, including against Israelis. According to reports, authorities in Tirana foiled an Iranian-devised plot to attack a World Cup soccer match between Albania and Israel in 2016. In response, United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo noted that Tehran has over the past six months been busted for planning attacks in both France and Denmark, adding that “the world must stand together to sanction Iran’s regime until it changes its destructive behavior.” In October, Denmark recalled its ambassador to Tehran after accusing the Islamic Republic of plotting an attack against three Iranian-Arab separatists living in the Scandinavian nation. That revelation came just weeks after the French government froze the assets of an Iranian ministry and two individuals connected to a thwarted attack—purportedly masterminded by the director general of Iranian intelligence—on a meeting of a dissident group near Paris. The European Union has refused to sanction Iran for its malign activities on the continent and, instead, is working with the mullahs to finalize a so-called Special Purpose Vehicle to enable continued non-dollar trade with Tehran by circumventing renewed American financial penalties on the Islamic Republic.