TEHRAN -- Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has killed or captured 69 terrorists linked to the Israeli spy agency Mossad during a major counterterrorism drill in the country’s southeast, the drill’s spokesman said Friday.  
General Ahmad Shafaei, the spokesman for the “Martyrs of Security” drill, said a total of 23 terrorists have been killed and another 46 arrested in various clean-up operations in the Sistan and Baluchestan province since November 1.
Seven terrorists have also turned themselves in during the period.
“The undeniable fact about terrorists is that they rely on arrogant powers, particularly the intelligence service of the wicked and vicious Zionist regime,” Shafaei said.
“Unfortunately, weapons and munitions at terrorists’ disposal are among the most sophisticated ones in the world. This accounts for their heavy dependence.” 
The official stated that several members of the disbanded terror teams were non-Iranian nationals, who had been hired by foreign intelligence agencies to carry out acts of sabotage and terror inside Iran.
In a most recent operation, six terrorists were arrested and four others were eliminated, three of whom were non-Iranians, he added. 
On October 26, ten members of Iran’s law enforcement forces were martyred in a terrorist attack in the Gohar Kuh district of Taftan in the Sistan and Baluchestan province.
The so-called Jaish al-Adl terrorist group claimed responsibility for the assault, which was one of the deadliest in the province in recent months.
The group has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in Iran, primarily in Sistan and Baluchestan.
Its tactics include the abduction of border guards as well as targeting civilians and police stations within the province to incite chaos and disorder.
In January, Iran launched a military operation during which the headquarters of the Pakistan-based terrorist group was targeted in missile strikes, destroying its infrastructure.