Iraqi Shiite Muslim men from the Iran-backed group Kataib Hezbollah march in a Quds Day parade, in Baghdad, July 25, 2014. Photo: Reuters / Thaier al-Sudani.

i24 News – Iran is looking to attack non-military Israeli and United Arab Emirates targets in African states, the New York Times reported on Monday.

The report zoomed in on the foiled attack on the UAE embassy in Ethiopia, which was reported in early February.

At the time, the Ethiopian authorities said they arrested 15 individuals, with the alleged mastermind behind the attack also arrested in Sweden.

The Times cited sources in Western and Israeli intelligence agencies as saying that the attack had been initiated by Iran, which activated its sleeper cell last autumn.

At the same time, the newspaper cited Israeli officials as saying that only three of the 15 people arrested for the plot were suspected of being Iranian agents.

The report, denied by Iran, adds that the attack was only part of a larger campaign aimed at soft targets in Africa as Iran seeks to avenge the killings of its Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani and nuclear mastermind Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.

Soleimani was killed in January 2020 in a US drone strike in Baghdad, with Washington accusing him of a plot to attack US embassies.

Fakhrizadeh was killed in November 2020 in what Iran described as a sophisticated ambush utilizing an AI-driven satellite-controlled weapon.