Iran has dismantled several opposition Internet networks it says were backed by the US.

The government said that the networks had been set up by Iranian opposition groups, which had encouraged a number of organised “American cyber war networks.”

According to Iran’s official press, 30 suspects were arrested in a series of security operations.

The Iranian government issued a statement after the arrests to say the US had been using Internet networks to undermine Iran's ruling system under a policy which sprang up during George W. Bush's presidency.

The statement claimed the US Congress had approved a $400 million budget for covert Internet operations that encouraged the restoration of Iran's monarchy.