TEHRAN – The deputy interior minister for security affairs clarified on Monday that the recent developments in Turkey and Armenia had mounted no threats to Iran though security forces were on high alert.

As Turkey was emerging securely from a military coup, gunmen seized a police station in Yerevan, Armenia's capital, taking an unknown number of hostages on Sunday morning.

“Domestic developments in Turkey and Armenia posed no threats to our country as we had expected … and from the very beginning of the Turkey developments, borderline provinces were prepared for border controls,” Hossein Zolfaqari told a press conference.

Hours after the abortive coup in Turkey late on Friday there were rumors that all Iranian fighter jets had been scrambled to northwestern provinces where Iran share borders Turkey.

On extraordinary measures taken by Iran immediately after the coup in Turkey, Zolfaqari said travelling to Turkey was constrained and eased up on Sunday again as of 4 p.m.

No Iranian nationals were reportedly among hundreds of people who were killed, wounded, or arrested during the event.

Kermanshah attack still under investigation

On the recent attack on a lawmaker in Kermanshah province, Zolfaqari said while a lot has been done, no arrest has been made.

“No one has been apprehended in this regard yet, but appropriate actions have been taken and some clues have been found…”

However he discouraged any speculation about the incident.

The official was referring to a recent assassination attack on an MP in the village of Rijab, western Iran.

Zolfaqari says: “Domestic developments in Turkey and Armenia posed no threats to our country as we had expected … and from the very beginning of the Turkey developments, borderline provinces were prepared for border controls.”

The vehicle carrying Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, the representative of Eslamabad-e Gharb in Majlis, came under attack by four terrorists as he was travelling to the village of Rijab on July 10.

While Falahatpisheh and two more survived the assassination unscathed, sustaining injuries, the driver and head of the Veterinary Department of Dalahou County lost their lives in the shooting.

Iran has pointed an accusing finger at the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK) over the attempt.

Takfiri moves closely watched amid sabotage plots

It is now two years Iran has been observing Takfiri groups, Zolfaqari said elsewhere in his remarks.

“They are looking for sabotage inside Iran, but our intelligence and military superiority has neutralized all their attempts.”

Due to the superiority, terrorist groups have failed to carry out missions inside Iran, while almost all regional countries, including Turkey, have not been secure from blasts.

Particularly, this level of security has been possible due to 24/7 patrolling by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) intelligence officers.

Over the past two months they have thrashed terrorist cells in eastern areas of the country.

In this regard, Zalfaqari blamed terrorist groups for links with regional intelligence services. 

AK/PA