Taking Samples At The Site Of Missile Drills, A Number Of Foreigners Detained By Iran's Revolutionary Guards On Charges Of Spying, Including British Diplomats

JAKARTA - Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have detained several foreigners, including Britain's second most senior envoy in Tehran, on charges of spying such as taking soil samples in restricted areas, state television reported on Wednesday.

It was not clear when they were arrested or whether they were still being held. Britain said the report was "completely false".

"This spy sampled the earth in Iran's central desert where the Revolutionary Guards' aerospace missile drills were conducted," state TV said.

Iranian state TV showed what it said was footage of Giles Whitaker and his family in central Iran, where the British diplomat appeared to be taking soil samples. TV said it was near the area where a missile test was carried out by Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

"Whitaker was expelled from the city after apologizing (the authorities)," the TV report said.

However, a spokesman for the UK Foreign Office said: "Reports of the arrest of a British diplomat in Iran are completely false."

"Reports of the arrest of a British diplomat in Iran are completely untrue," a spokesman for the UK foreign office said.

Meanwhile, Samuel Heath, Britain's spokesman for the United States, tweeted: "He (Whitaker) isn't even uploaded in Iran anymore!"

One of those detained was identified by state TV as the husband of the Austrian cultural attache in Iran. Austrian officials were not immediately available for comment on the matter.

TV also showed pictures of a third foreigner, identified as Maciej Walczak, a university professor in Poland, who is said to have visited Iran as a tourist.

TV reports contained footage allegedly showing Walczak and three colleagues collecting earth samples in other areas, after visiting Iran on a scientific exchange program. It said their sample collection also coincided with a missile test in Iran's southern Kerman Province.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners in recent years, mostly on espionage and security-related charges.

Aadpun rights groups accuse Iran of trying to win concessions from other countries through arrests on possibly fabricated security charges. Tehran denies arresting people for political reasons.