Israeli arrested over Iran plot to assassinate Netanyahu, Israeli security agency says
An Israeli citizen has been arrested on suspicion of involvement in an Iranian plot to assassinate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials, Israeli security services said.
Israeli police and domestic intelligence said the man had been smuggled into Iran twice and received money for his work.
In a joint statement, they said the suspect was a businessman who had lived in Türkiye and had links to Turks who helped smuggle the suspect into Iran.
The announcement comes at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and Israel, arch-enemies in the region.
The suspect, who has not been identified, was arrested last month, the statement said. The suspect’s targets included the prime minister, the defense minister and the head of Israel’s internal security agency Shin Bet, the statement said.
The report said that in April and May, the suspect traveled twice to Samandag in Türkiye to meet a wealthy Iranian businessman named Eddie, and was assisted by two Turkish citizens.
The statement said Eddie had problems leaving Iran on both occasions, so the Israeli citizen was smuggled into Iran from Türkiye instead. The statement said the man met both Eddie and “an Iranian security officer” there.
Eddie asked Israelis to “perform various security tasks inside Israel for the Iranian regime.” According to the statement, these tasks included moving money or guns, taking photos of crowded places in Israel and sending them to “Iranian elements,” and threatening other Israeli citizens who had been recruited by Iran but had not yet completed their tasks.
At the second meeting in Iran, Iranian intelligence agents reportedly asked the Israelis to carry out terrorist operations in Israel, including the assassination of Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant or Shin Bet director Ronen Bar.
The investigation also suggested assassinating former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and other public figures in retaliation for the July 2024 killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran. Iran blamed Israel for that attack, although Israel neither confirmed nor denied involvement.
Investigators said the Israelis demanded $1 million up front.
The group also allegedly discussed killing opponents of the Iranian regime in Europe and the United States, and recruited a Mossad agent to become a “double agent”.
The Israeli was said to have been paid €5,000 ($5,600; £4,200) for the meetings.
A senior Shin Bet official said the case “is a prime example of the extensive efforts by Iranian intelligence agents to recruit Israeli citizens to promote terrorist activities in Israel”.
Iran and Israel have been arch enemies since the Islamic revolution that brought the current regime to power in Iran in 1979.
Iran does not recognize Israel’s right to exist and is a major supporter of Israel’s rivals including Hamas and Hezbollah. Hostilities between Iran and Israel have increased with the war in Gaza, and both sides have carried out direct or indirect attacks on each other in recent months.
