Since its establishment, the Israeli occupation has sought to project an image of being highly secure, particularly when it comes to its settler population, portraying them as resistant to infiltration or recruitment by foreign intelligence agencies.
However, recent years have exposed significant vulnerabilities. Espionage cases involving Israelis working for foreign actors have emerged at unprecedented levels, including the transfer of highly sensitive information relating to military facilities, strategic targets, and even the activities of serving soldiers.
The latest case involving alleged cooperation with Iran resulted in the sentencing of an Israeli soldier who sent video footage to an Iranian handler showing missile interception operations.
Hebrew media reported that the soldier transmitted several video clips during the recent 12 Day War and received payment for at least one of them. He also supplied footage of non military locations that he had filmed and sent to Iranian contacts.
Espionage Cases Surge Since Operation Al Aqsa Flood
The exposure of Israelis carrying out security related tasks for foreign intelligence agencies has increased sharply since Operation Al Aqsa Flood in 2023, particularly in cases linked to Iranian intelligence, despite the extensive military and intelligence surveillance imposed on Israeli society.
Israeli media has gone so far as to describe the phenomenon as an “espionage epidemic”, especially given that financial gain appears to be the primary motivation. In many cases, those recruited received only modest sums in exchange for information considered highly sensitive to the occupation.
Shin Bet Reports a 400 Percent Increase
According to the Shin Bet’s 2025 annual report, published on its official website, 25 Israelis were indicted on charges of spying for Iran.
The agency also stated that it had disrupted 120 espionage attempts linked to Iran during the same year.
The report noted that Iranian intelligence recruitment of Israeli citizens increased by 400 percent in 2025 compared with 2024. It also pointed out that 2023 saw numerous espionage cases, including 50 indictments against Israelis.
Meanwhile, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy documented 31 alleged Iranian plots targeting the occupation between 2013 and 2025, involving a total of 45 Israeli participants.
How Are Israelis Recruited?
According to Shin Bet reports and Hebrew media, most recruitment efforts rely on low cost digital communication. Recruiters, trained to communicate fluently in Hebrew, contact Israelis through platforms such as Telegram, WhatsApp and other messaging applications.
They typically offer money in exchange for photographs, information or the completion of specific assignments. In many cases, the payments are relatively small, a fact that has surprised Israeli observers given the seriousness of the information being exchanged.
Hebrew media reports indicate that recruitment often begins with seemingly harmless requests to photograph public spaces, roads or intersections near sensitive locations. The assignments then become progressively more dangerous over time.
Among the tasks carried out by Israelis accused of working with Iran were photographing Israeli military movements in the occupied Golan, recording missile interceptions, and providing the coordinates of military sites and strategic facilities.
Unprecedented Intelligence Gathering
One of the most unusual operations attributed to Israeli collaborators was revealed by the Hanzala network, which is believed to be affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
According to the group, Israeli collaborators supplied footage of residential complexes housing Mossad officers, Israeli Air Force personnel, and members of the Shin Bet.
The network published drone footage reportedly launched from a vehicle travelling along a road in occupied Palestine near Tel Aviv. The drone flew at low altitude over the homes of Mossad officers, recording all access roads, nearby facilities, markets, bus stops and pedestrian activity without being detected.
Hanzala claimed the footage had been filmed by an Israeli in exchange for money and publicly invited others to provide intelligence in return for payment.
High Profile Espionage Cases
Among the most prominent cases reported by Hebrew media were those involving Israelis Roy Mizrahi and Almog Attias, who were allegedly recruited to carry out assignments for money in occupied Haifa.
According to the reports, Mizrahi’s financial debts made him vulnerable to recruitment. After joining an online group centred on relationships with women, he began receiving payments for simple tasks such as photographing areas around his home and documenting advertising billboards.
Over time, the assignments escalated, eventually including a request to transport a bag containing an explosive device from one location to another.
The operation reportedly culminated in the installation of a surveillance camera outside the home of Israeli Minister of War Israel Katz in the Kfar Ahim settlement.
Another widely reported case involved a teenage Israeli settler who filmed the Israeli Ministry of War and Ichilov Hospital before sending the footage to Iran in exchange for US$1,170, according to Israeli Army Radio.
He was also allegedly asked to film the movements of Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar but was unable to do so because of school commitments, indicating he could carry out the task during the school holidays.
The same contacts also instructed him to search for rental apartments near the Israeli Ministry of War in Tel Aviv. According to the reports, he contacted several real estate agents to enquire about available properties in the area.
