Iran’s Intelligence Ministry said on Saturday it has arrested a Swedish citizen in Iran on charges of espionage.

In a statement, the ministry said the Swedish national, whose identity remains unknown, had contact with "European and non-European suspects" in Iran.

It claimed that the detained Swede had made several trips to Iran and visited different cities which are not typical tourist destinations.

The ministry alleged that in all his/her trips, the arrested person had communicated with "European and non-European suspects who were under surveillance in Iran" and observed all “professional principles of communication, protection and concealment". It said the Swedish person had also travelled to Israel before visiting Iran.

The arrest was announced as Iran has “strongly condemned” a Swedish court’s sentencing of former Iranian jailor Hamid Nouri to life imprisonment over executions of political prisoners in 1988.

Late in June, the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs advised its citizens against traveling to the Islamic Republic due to security risks to foreigners.

Tehran is already holding hostage Iranian-Swedish academic Ahmadreza Djalali, who is on death row.

Iran has been accused of wrongfully detaining foreign and dual nationals on trumped up charges, effectively as hostages to extract concessions from Western governments.