Seven Israeli nationals were arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran over the past two years, and were believed to have carried out hundreds of missions on behalf of Tehran until their arrest on September 19.

The Attorney General’s Office submitted preliminary documents for indictments against the seven people on Monday. Indictments are expected to be filed Friday for a series of security offenses, including cooperating with the enemy, a crime punishable by up to life in prison.

Charges

The prosecution alleges that the suspects carried out some 600 missions on behalf of Iran, including photographing and collecting intelligence on military bases and sensitive infrastructure, as well as spying on military leaders.

Israel’s Ramat David Air Base, Nevatim Air Base, Mossad headquarters in Glilot, the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv and the Golani Brigade base in the north, where four soldiers were killed in a Hezbollah drone attack last week, were among the sites reportedly monitored by the group. . Several of these military bases were targeted by Iran during its ballistic missile attack on October 1. The suspects are also accused of photographing the sites of the Hadera power plant and the Iron Dome missile defense batteries.

“The network has conducted extensive reconnaissance missions on Israeli military bases throughout the country, focusing on Air Force and Navy installations, ports, Iron Dome system locations and energy infrastructure such as the Hadera power plant,” reads a statement from the Israeli police. The suspects “received maps of strategic sites from their managers, including the Golani Brigade base”, as part of their mission. He called the case “one of the most serious investigations carried out in Israel in recent years.”

The investigation revealed that two Iranian agents – named Alhan and Orhan – transferred hundreds of thousands of shekels in cash and Bitcoin to the suspects and asked them to purchase special surveillance equipment for their missions. The money was delivered by three Russian nationals to Israel. It is not clear whether the Russians entered Israel as tourists or immigrants.

Police said the two Iranian agents drew up lists of sites to photograph and how much the suspects would be paid for each mission, sometimes as many as three or four per day. The images have been sent via secure channels to Iran.

Contact with Iran was allegedly established via a Turkish national named Alhassan. Israeli police said Alhassan was a suspect in other recent espionage cases, including that of Moti Maman, an Israeli who lived in Turkey and is suspected of traveling to Iran twice and accepting… spying in Israel on behalf of Tehran. Maman, who was also arrested on September 19 after another investigation, is accused of having collected information to facilitate the assassination of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Who are they?

According to police, the seven Jewish men – five adults, including a deserted soldier, and two minors – were all from the Haifa area and without stable employment. They had immigrated to Israel from Azerbaijan. Two are father and son.

The investigation by the Shin Bet and Israel Police Unit 433, which began two months ago, ended on September 19 when three of the men were arrested while photographing a military base, followed by the other four.

Police say all seven were knowingly working for Iran and had been tasked with recruiting more Israelis, but they were arrested before they could do so.

On October 14, two more Israelis were arrested – a 30-year-old man and his 18-year-old girlfriend – who were in contact with Iranian agents for allegedly carrying out several missions on behalf of Iran, including hanging posters and hiding money. and set vehicles on fire. The pair were also allegedly instructed to sabotage vending machines and start wildfires, and received approximately $5,000 for each mission.

Interior Minister Moshe Arbel has instructed his office to consider revoking the citizenship of seven Israelis suspected of espionage.

Sensitive US documents leaked to pro-Iran group

Meanwhile, the United States is investigating the unauthorized release of classified documents containing details of Israel’s military preparations for a possible strike against Iran, the Associated Press reported Sunday. The documents appeared on a pro-Iranian Telegram account.

Citing three unnamed U.S. officials, the report claimed the documents came from the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency and contained details about the types of missiles Israel might use and a recent Israeli military exercise simulating an attack on Iran.

U.S. officials said they were investigating how the documents were obtained by the pro-Iran group and whether it was an intentional leak by a member of the U.S. intelligence community or a hack computer science. According to Israeli media, the Biden administration apologized to Israel for the security breach.