Shafaq News/ On Monday, the Israeli Public Prosecutor's Office disclosed the capture of a spy network operating on behalf of Iran.
The network reportedly filmed Israeli military bases that were targeted by Iran’s missile attack earlier this month.
According to the prosecutor, the network consists of seven Azerbaijani immigrants recruited by Iran, as reported by Russia Today Arabic.
Iran launched a major missile attack on Israel on October 1st, claiming it was in retaliation for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the political bureau of Hamas, Hassan Nasrallah, the secretary-general of Hezbollah, and Brigadier General Abbas Nilforoushan, the deputy commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC).
The Times of Israel reported that "seven Israelis were arrested on charges of spying for Iran, having carried out hundreds of missions for Tehran." The report noted that "all the suspects are Jewish residents of Haifa and northern Israel, including a fugitive soldier and two minors."
The suspects are accused of photographing and gathering information on Israeli military bases and facilities, including the Kirya defense headquarters in Tel Aviv and the Nevatim and Ramat David airbases, as well as Iron Dome defense system sites.
Nevatim Airbase has been a target in several Iranian missile strikes this year, and Ramat David Airbase was previously targeted by Hezbollah. Allegedly, the suspects received maps of strategic sites from their handlers, including the Golani base, which was attacked by a deadly drone strike earlier this month.
Investigations revealed that the suspects carried out a series of tasks for Iranian intelligence agencies and maintained contact with Iranian operatives. In return, they were paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, part of which was transferred through cryptocurrency.
The Times of Israel noted that some of the suspects had been spying for Iran for two years, with all of them engaging in espionage activities since the beginning of the war. The Public Prosecutor's Office intends to file formal charges against the suspects on Friday and request their detention until legal proceedings are concluded.