TEHRAN, May 5 (Xinhua) -- The Iranian Intelligence Ministry said on Friday its forces have arrested 71 individuals for causing "disruption" and "instability" in the country's foreign exchange market.
The ministry announced the arrests in a statement published on its website elaborating on its measures to control domestic forex trading.
It said the illicit activities carried out by 23 groups and a number of organized networks caused instability and abnormal fluctuations in the forex market and "wasted" the country's foreign currency resources.
The ministry added the arrestees, who were captured following intelligence reports, were based in the provinces of Kurdestan, East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Isfahan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Khorasan Razavi, Alborz, Mazandaran, Ilam and Kerman.
According to the statement, the criminals, comprising "unauthorized" individuals and forex practitioners, engaged in "illegal" speculative trading and arbitrage as well as other activities, such as the "fake" pricing of the major currencies on social media. ■
