Briefly

IRAN

Terrorist plot foiled in Teheran, 28 arrested

The Iranian intelligence has foiled a terrorist plot targeting multiple crowded places here in the Iranian capital Teheran and arrested 28 suspects, the Intelligence Ministry said on Sunday. In a statement published on its website, the ministry said 30 simultaneous explosions had been planned, with an aim to disrupt national security, create fear among the people, and provoke unrest on the anniversary of last fall's riots. The statement added that the arrestees were affiliated with the Islamic State group, and some of them had contact with what Iran claimed as "Takfiri terrorists" in Syria, or travel records toward Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Iraqi Kurdistan Region.

ITALY

Jailed mafia boss Messina Denaro dies

Italian mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, who was arrested in January after spending 30 years on the run, has died, ANSA news agency reported on Monday. Messina Denaro, 61, was suffering from cancer at the time of his arrest. As his condition worsened in recent weeks, he was transferred to a hospital from the maximum security prison in central Italy where he was initially held. Denaro had requested no aggressive medical treatment, ANSA reported, adding that medics had stopped feeding him after he was declared to be in irreversible coma.

Agencies - Xinhua