British man arrested in Cyprus suspected of spying and terror offences

A British man has been arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying and terror-related offences.

The BBC understands he is thought to have carried out surveillance for Iran on the RAF Akrotiri base on the island.

Local media say he is of Azerbaijani descent and has connections to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

He appeared in a district court earlier on Saturday and was detained for a further eight days. The Foreign Office said it was in contact with Cypriot authorities.

RAF Akrotiri is the UK’s most significant base in the region and has previously been used to help defend Israeli skies from attack by Iran.

Last week, it was announced that further planes would be sent there to protect existing UK assets.

In a statement, the UK Foreign Office said: “We are in contact [with] the authorities in Cyprus regarding the arrest of a British man.”

The statement was provided to the BBC following a question regarding reports in Cypriot media about the counter-terror arrest.

Police on the island said a man had been arrested on suspicion of terror-related offences and espionage. They said they would not say more for reasons of national security.

Cyprus’s ANT1 news outlet said the suspect was thought to have had RAF Akrotiri under surveillance, as well as Cyprus’s own Andreas Papandreou Air Base in the western region of Paphos since mid-April.

RAF Akrotiri is home to fast jets, reconnaissance, transport and refuelling aircraft.