A British-Azerbaijani national has been arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on a British airbase and passing information to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Metropolitan Police said.
Rashad Sultanov, 44, from Islington, north London, was arrested on 17 July by Cypriot authorities and is being held in custody. Extradition proceedings are continuing, according to a police statement issued on Friday.
The arrest is part of Britain's first overseas National Security Act investigation, led by counter-terrorism police. The investigation concerns alleged incidents at Britain's RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus between 11 May and 22 June last year.
Police allege that Sultanov conducted hostile surveillance on the base and then shared information with the IRGC. Helen Flanagan, head of counter-terrorism policing in London, stated that the case demonstrates the ability to use the National Security Act overseas when British military bases are allegedly targeted by hostile state activity.