Turkey foils Iran plot at US Incirlik base: Report

Sabah newspaper says Turkish security forces busted a cell that also tried to move armed drones to Cyprus

By Ragip Soylu in Ankara

Turkish security forces have arrested a cell working for Iranian intelligence that attempted to spy on the US airbase at Incirlik, Sabah newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The report said that Turkish intelligence and Istanbul police detained six people across five provinces, adding that the cell was led by Iranian intelligence agents NR, codenamed “Haji”, and MYD, codenamed “Doctor”.

The investigation revealed that NR tasked Turkish citizen AK, who lives in the eastern province of Van, with hiring people to take photos and videos of the Incirlik Air Base in Adana, which has been jointly controlled by Ankara and Washington for decades.

The story surfaced as US President Donald Trump reviews military options against Iran following weeks of anti-government protests that have been suppressed with disproportionate force, killing at least 4,000 people, according to Turkish officials.

Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, warned earlier this month that Tehran could carry out preemptive strikes against Israel and US military assets in the region.

“In the event of an attack on Iran, both the occupied territories and all American military centres, bases, and ships in the region will be our legitimate targets,” Qalibaf said during a parliamentary session.

“We do not consider ourselves limited to responding after the act and will take action based on any objective signs of a threat.”

Sabah reported that five of the six suspects were Turkish nationals, while one person, identified by the initials AJ, was an Iranian citizen. They were arrested by the Istanbul Criminal Courts of Peace on charges of “obtaining confidential state information for political or military espionage purposes”.

According to the report, Turkish national AK and Iranian national AJ attended special drone training programmes in Iran between August and September 2025. The report also alleged that AJ, through two companies he owns, tried to ship armed drones to the Republic of Cyprus.

Cyprus remains divided between the internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus in the south and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, recognised only by Ankara.

Southern Cyprus has reportedly become a hub for US and British intelligence activities during Israel’s genocide in Gaza since 2023, providing information to the Israeli military. Reports also suggest that many Israelis have purchased property on the island.

Sabah further reported that two other Turkish nationals involved in the cell, identified as EE and TO, travelled to Iran in October 2025 and played a role in drone shipment attempts to southern Cyprus.

In his testimony, another Turkish national, RB, said he had received an offer to carry out an assassination against Iranian dissidents.

The network reportedly used encrypted messages under the codename “Pigeon” and financed its operations under the guise of drone trade activities.Trump initially threatened Tehran during the violent crackdown but later said he was open to talks with Iran’s leadership.

Washington has since been weighing precision strikes on “high-value” Iranian officials and commanders it deems responsible for the deaths of protesters, a Gulf official familiar with the discussions told Middle East Eye.

In recent days, the US has deployed warplanes, air defence systems and battleships to the region, giving Trump the option to target senior Iranian officials.

The build-up appears to be reaching a peak. On Monday, the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier arrived in Middle Eastern waters.