AFP

Tehran on Saturday "strongly" condemned the new sanctions imposed by the United States on the Iranian Ministry of Security (intelligence) over its accusation of being behind a cyber attack targeting Albania in July. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani expressed the ministry's "strongly condemnation of the US Treasury's move to repeatedly impose the ban on the Iranian Ministry of Security and its minister," Ismail Khatib. And he considered in a statement that "the new ban, like the previous illegal US sanctions measures against the Ministry of Defense, will never be able to cause any disruption to the resolve to serve the security of the Iranian people in this majestic body." On Friday, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on the Iranian ministry, accusing it of being behind a cyber attack targeting Albania, which is affiliated with NATO, as well as Washington. Washington also accused the Iranian ministry of running networks in the fields of electronic espionage, hacking and ransomware. Albania announced on Wednesday cutting its relations with Iran against the background of this attack, which it explained that it took place on July 15 and aimed at paralyzing public utilities and accessing data in government departments. Tirana emphasized the failure of the attack to achieve its goals or inflict any lasting damage. Kanaani said that the United States' rush to take action against Iran "by resorting to the same false and unproven accusation, clearly shows that the designer of this scenario is not the Albanian government, but the American government." Relations between Tehran and Tirana have been tense for years, against the backdrop of Albania's hosting of the People's Mojahedin Organization, classified as "terrorist" by the Islamic Republic, which it accuses of being behind many attacks and bombings. Kanaani considered that "America imposed hosting a terrorist group on the government and people of Albania for many years and, in addition to providing full support to it, trained and equipped its elements in the cyber field," noting that "this criminal organization is still as it was one of America's tools in carrying out terrorist acts and attacks." Cyber ​​and psychological warfare against the government and people of Iran