CenterHigh
BBC NewsNews report · Jul 31, 6:42 AM
British man accused of spying on Cyprus RAF base for Iran
accusedspying
Rashad Sultanov, a UK-Azerbaijan national, was arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on RAF Akrotiri.
← Today's headlines
11 sources checked · Left, Center, and Right included · 1h ago
Different Spin
British man accused of spying on Cyprus RAF base for Iran
One headline is entirely unrelated to the story, while the others factually report an accusation of spying for Iran.
2 Left5 Center4 Right
DIFFERENT SPIN
HOW EACH SIDE WORDED IT
Left-leaningCenter-leftBritish man accused of spying for Iran at RAF base arrested in Cyprus
The IndependentMostly Factual
accusedspyingarrested
Right-leaning‘Taxi driver’, 45, is arrested over ‘spying for Iran’ at RAF base in Cyprus targeted by barrage of drones
The SunMixed
Center baseline · 
The ScotsmanMostly FactualFirst British man to dive to the Titanic hosts sessions at London exhibition
As of July 31, 2026 at 10:33 AM, this is how Optics News reads the wording differences in this story.
What happened Rashad Sultanov, a UK-Azerbaijan national, was arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on RAF Akrotiri.
The headline split The left frames it as "British man accused of spying for Iran at RAF base arrested in Cyprus". The right frames it as "‘Taxi driver’, 45, is arrested over ‘spying for Iran’ at RAF base in Cyprus targeted by b...".
Match confidence High confidence. 11 sources checked, Left/Center/Right all represented. Best read as a clear framing signal — not a fact-check.
Same-event confidenceHigh
11 sources across Left, Center, and Right all describe the same event.
Framing confidenceStrong
95/99 — headlines create a clearly different first impression.
WHAT EACH SIDE EMPHASIZED
Left / center-leftBritish man accused of spying for Iran at RAF base arrested in Cyprus
The Independent · Center-left · News report
CenterBritish man accused of spying on Cyprus RAF base for Iran
BBC News · Center · News report
Right / center-rightBritish-Azerbaijani national arrested for allegedly spying on airbase in Cyprus for Iran's IRGC
The Jerusalem Post · Center-right · News report
SEE THE HEADLINES
Open source
Center-rightMostly Factual
The Jerusalem PostNews report · Jul 31, 10:33 AM
British-Azerbaijani national arrested for allegedly spying on airbase in Cyprus for Iran's IRGC
arrestedallegedly spyingIran's IRGC
Rashad Sultanov, 44, from Islington in north London, was arrested on July 17 by Cypriot authorities and is being held in custody as extradition proceedings progress, the Metropolitan Police...
CenterMostly Factual
The ScotsmanNews report · Jul 31, 9:12 AM
First British man to dive to the Titanic hosts sessions at London exhibition
Visitors can meet Titanic explorer Dik Barton at the exhibition.
Center-leftMostly Factual
The IndependentNews report · Jul 31, 8:46 AM
British man accused of spying for Iran at RAF base arrested in Cyprus
accusedspyingarrested
Rashad Sultanov, 44, is being held in custody as extradition proceedings progress
RightMixed
Daily ExpressNews report · Jul 31, 7:48 AM
British man arrested after being accused of spying on RAF base for Iran
The arrest follows a probe led by Counter Terrorism Policing London.
CenterMostly Factual
The Straits TimesNews report · Jul 31, 7:41 AM
Man suspected of spying on UK military base for Iran arrested in Cyprus
LONDON, July 31 - A dual British-Azerbaijani national has been arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on a British air base on the Mediterranean island and passing information to Iran's...
Show all 11 sources
Center-leftMixed
The Mirror UKNews report · Jul 31, 7:19 AM
British man arrested in Cyprus accused of 'hostile surveillance' at RAF Akrotiri
A British man is accused of carrying out hostile surveillance at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus before allegedly passing information to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp.
RightMixed
The SunNews report · Jul 31, 7:03 AM
‘Taxi driver’, 45, is arrested over ‘spying for Iran’ at RAF base in Cyprus targeted by barrage of drones
A BRITISH "taxi driver" has been arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran at an RAF base in Cyprus - which was later targeted by drones. Rashad Sultanov, 44 - a dual UK and Azerbaijani nati...
CenterHigh
Financial Times - CompaniesNews report · Jul 31, 6:36 AM
British Airways owner IAG ditches growth plans amid Iran conflict
Soaring fuel prices force airline group to cut capacity
CenterHigh
The Belfast TelegraphNews report · Jul 31, 6:29 AM
British man accused of spying for Iran at RAF base could be extradited to UK
Center-rightHigh
Sky NewsNews report · Jul 31, 5:06 AM
Man arrested in Cyprus in first overseas National Security Act investigation
A man has been arrested in Cyprus as part of the first investigation using the National Security Act in relation to alleged offences in an overseas territory.
Details95/99 Wording Gap · High confidence · 11 sources
95/99 Wording GapHigh confidence11 sources · 3 bias bucketsStable · 11 sources · all three buckets · comparable news formatFormats: News report
SOURCE MAP CHANGES
Jul 31, 5:06 AM: Sky News joined the source map.
Jul 31, 6:29 AM: The Belfast Telegraph joined the source map.
Jul 31, 6:36 AM: Financial Times - Companies joined the source map.
Jul 31, 6:42 AM: BBC News joined the source map.
Now: Wording Gap is 95/99 and story health is stable · 11 sources · all three buckets · comparable news format.