An alleged spy for Israel has been arrested by Iranian security agencies in the northwestern province of Ardabil, local authorities reported. Jalal Afaghi, the prosecutor general in Ardabil, announced late Wednesday that the suspect was wanted by Iran’s intelligence ministry and worked for the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad.
Afaghi revealed that the suspect, originally from one of Iran’s southern provinces, had traveled across many regions to evade detection. The individual was ultimately apprehended in an ambush set by Iranian security forces in the border province as he planned to flee the country.
According to Afaghi, the suspect had been in contact with high-ranking Mossad officers “through one of the social media networks” and was collecting information for them.
The arrest comes shortly after General Hossein Salami, the top commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), vowed retribution for the death of IRGC military adviser Saeid Abyar, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike near Aleppo, Syria, on Monday. General Salami warned that Israel “will pay for the blood” of Abyar.
In recent years, Iranian security and intelligence agencies have arrested numerous individuals accused of espionage for Israel. In January, four people allegedly linked to Mossad were executed for their involvement in a bombing operation in central Isfahan province. Weeks prior, four members of a sabotage team, also allegedly connected to Mossad, were executed for conducting “extensive actions” against Iranian security forces under Mossad’s direction.
In December 2023, another person convicted of spying for the Israeli intelligence agency was executed in Sistan and Baluchistan province.
Tensions between Iran and Israel have escalated significantly following an April 1 attack on the Iranian Consulate in Syria, which resulted in the deaths of seven IRGC officers. Iran blamed Israel for the attack and responded with a direct assault involving hundreds of drones and missiles.–News Desk