Execution of 3 accused of spying and mass detentions fuel crackdown fears in Iran

Fears that Iran's regime could use the conflict with Israel to crack down on its own population grew after three people were executed and hundreds more arrested.

Fears that the Iranian regime could be using its war with Israel to crack down on its own population grew Wednesday after three people were executed and hundreds more were arrested and accused of spying.

The three people put to death Wednesday were accused of spying for Mossad, Israel's espionage agency, by bringing “assassination equipment” into the country disguised as shipments of alcoholic beverages that was used in the assassination of a public figure, according to Tasnim, a semiofficial outlet affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

A separate report from the state-aligned Fars News Agency on Wednesday said that more than 700 people it described as “Israeli mercenaries” had been arrested over the last 12 days.

Both reports came after a day of relative calm between Israel and Iran after President Donald Trump demanded they cease hostilities, which began when Israeli struck Iranian nuclear facilities and other targets on June 13.

“This crackdown was inevitable,” Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at the London-based Chatham House think tank, told NBC News on Wednesday.