Iran's Revolutionary Guard warns France against Israeli 'false flag' trap over cyberattack allegations

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned France on Saturday against falling into an Israeli "false flag" trap after Paris accused an Iranian cyber unit of attacking supermarket refrigeration systems. Revolutionary Guard spokesman Hossein Mohebbi dismissed the allegations as "ridiculous," accusing Israel of using them to fuel hostility toward Iran and rally European support. "Paris should beware of the Zionist regime's false flag trap," Mohebbi wrote on US social media platform X. He also claimed that, unlike the US and Israel, the Revolutionary Guard does not include civilians among its targets.

On Monday, the French government attributed the cyberattacks to Shahid Kaveh, a unit affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard's electronic warfare and cyber defense organization. The French Foreign Ministry said the attacks targeted refrigeration control systems at more than 700 retail locations overnight Oct. 11-12. The ministry said the attacks caused extensive damage, fires and food losses worth tens of millions of euros. Paris also announced plans to summon Iran's ambassador and seek additional European sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities allegedly involved in the attacks.

Iran's Foreign Ministry rejected the accusations Tuesday as baseless. The ministry said Tehran would take measures to protect its national interests and security against what it described as unlawful foreign actions.