Prime Minister Naftali Bennett stressed on Monday that the recently foiled plot that reportedly targeted Israeli tycoon Teddy Sagi was in fact a much wider Iranian attempt to kill Israelis residing in the island nation.
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"As opposed to some of the reports yesterday regarding an incident in Cyprus, I can clarify on behalf of the security establishment, that this was an act of terror that was orchestrated by Iran against Israeli businesspeople living in Cyprus. This is not a criminal act and the Israeli businessman Teddy Sagi was not the target of the attack," Bennett's spokesman said on the prime minister's official Twitter account.
Cypriot authorities announced last Tuesday that they arrested an Azeri national on suspicion that he was hired to target Israelis.
Sagi, 49, is the founder of gambling software company Playtech and owns Camden Market in London. He shares his time between the UK, Cyprus and Israel. According to Forbes, he is worth $5.6 billion, making him the fourth richest person in Israel.
Cypriot media outlet ANT1 alleged last week that the Iranians had contracted several mercenaries with the aim of killing and potentially abducting businessmen based in Cyprus.
Another Cypriot media outlet, Knews, said that the suspect, 38, was detained on Monday in Engomi, in western Nicosia, following an undercover investigation. At the time of his arrest, he was found in possession of a handgun with a silencer and said to be casing the office building where Sagi's operations are headquartered on the island.
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