Two Israelis from Jerusalem were arrested last month on suspicion of committing serious security offenses involving contact with Iranian intelligence operatives, the Israel Police and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) said in a joint statement on Thursday.
The Jerusalem State Attorney’s Office filed prosecutor’s statements against the duo with the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court earlier on Thursday.
Publication of details of the espionage affair is limited by a court-issued gag order.
According to investigators, over recent months the two suspects maintained contact with Iranian intelligence operatives and carried out various security-related tasks, while fully aware for whom they were working, police said.
The suspects, in their 20s, conducted their missions in exchange for payment, having received payments in digital wallets, according to the police and Shin Bet.
The two security agencies reiterated their warning to Israeli citizens against maintaining contact with foreign entities and carrying out tasks on their behalf. “Such actions constitute a serious criminal offense and endanger state security,” the statement read.
This latest incident joins a series of similar cases of Israeli citizens agreeing to carry out tasks for Iranian handlers, indicating the increased efforts of the Islamic Republic to recruit agents in Israel.
Last month, prosecutors charged an Israeli citizen with security offenses for allegedly carrying out espionage on Iran’s behalf, including taking photographs near the home of former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
Lekachau Demsash, 30, from the Tel Aviv suburb of Rishon Letzion, was arrested in December and admitted to interrogators that he had been in contact in recent months with Iranian operatives and was directed by them to carry out a series of “intelligence gathering missions” in exchange for payment.
In November, a 27-year-old Israeli suspected of maintaining contact with a foreign government and carrying out missions for Iran was apprehended by authorities.
According to the investigation, the suspect reached out to Iranian officials via social media and completed several assignments for payment.
The Shin Bet and police warned at the time that Iranian intelligence continues efforts to recruit Israelis via social media for espionage and terrorist activities.
In an accompanying video, the agencies cautioned: “Iranian intelligence officials are constantly trying to recruit Israelis through social networks. … Spying for the enemy is an act of betrayal, especially during wartime, and carries the most severe punishment. Don’t destroy your life. Report any suspicious approach from a foreign source.”
