Jerusalem: Iran's official media Israel's claim that it had stopped an attack in Cyprus by apprehending an Iranian agent, according to Nour News on Friday, was an attempt to hide its own domestic crisis.

Israel claimed on Thursday that its Mossad intelligence agency had conducted an operation in Iran to apprehend the alleged mastermind of an Iranian plot to assassinate Israeli businessmen in Cyprus.

"The Zionist regime, which is (facing a) deterioration of its domestic situation, has narrated a failed operation from a year ago in Iran where all of its agents were arrested in an upside-down manner," said Nour News, which is near Iran's top national security body.

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On Thursday, Mossad revealed that its agents inside Iran had detained the leader of a purported Iranian hit squad that intended to murder Israeli businessmen in Cyprus.

The Mossad, which rarely interacts with the media, claimed that the man had provided them with a thorough "confession." According to the report, security services in Cyprus destroyed the cell after relaying the information to the relevant authorities.

According to a Mossad statement citing an unnamed senior agency official, "We will reach whoever foments terrorism against Jews and Israelis around the world, including on Iranian soil."

Israel reportedly carried out a series of attacks on Iranian nuclear experts and facilities inside Iran over the years, in addition to frequently hitting Iranian targets in the neighbouring Syrian Arab Republic. Israel revealed a sizable collection of nuclear-related documents five years ago that it claimed the Mossad had stolen from an Iranian warehouse.

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Israel released video on Thursday showing a man it identified as Yusef Shahabazi Abbasalilu, the leader of the Iranian cell, claiming to have received orders from Iran's potent paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps.

He added that after scouting the target and photographing the target's residence in Cyprus, he fled the Balkan island nation and returned to Iran after learning that police were looking for him.

It was unclear if the man had been forced to speak. The cell was destroyed in an operation by the Cypriot security services as a result of the information he provided to investigators, according to the Mossad statement.

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The Associated Press repeatedly contacted Cypriot authorities who would only say that "they don't discuss matters of national security." Israel has long asserted that Iran is preparing plans to attack Israeli targets abroad and has warned citizens to exercise caution when travelling.

In Cyprus, a close ally of Israel, a man from Azerbaijan is on trial on charges that he intended to carry out the contract killings of Israelis residing in Cyprus.