Iran says it has arrested 17 spies who it says were working for the CIA, and sentenced some of them to death.
The intelligence ministry said the suspects had been collecting information in vital sectors – including military and nuclear areas of activity.
US President Donald Trump has dismissed the claims, saying the report is “totally false”.
Tensions have escalated in recent weeks between Washington and Tehran.
President Trump last year abandoned the international nuclear deal with the Iranians, and the US has imposed sweeping economic sanctions on them.
Iran made Monday’s announcement in state media, saying the alleged spies had been arrested in the 12 months to March 2019.
The Report of Iran capturing CIA spies is totally false. Zero truth. Just more lies and propaganda (like their shot down drone) put out by a Religious Regime that is Badly Failing and has no idea what to do. Their Economy is dead, and will get much worse. Iran is a total mess!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2019
On Friday, Iran seized a UK-flagged tanker in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Last month, Iran shot down a US surveillance drone over the strait, accusing it of violating Iranian airspace. But the US military said the drone had been over international waters at the time, and condemned it as an unprovoked attack.
