Israel arrests American suspected of working as Iranian spy

20-year-old American man arrested in Jerusalem area amid suspicions he spied on behalf of Iran.

By World Israel News Staff

Israeli authorities are preparing to indict a 20-year-old American citizen accused of taking money from an Iranian intelligence contact in exchange for gathering information inside Israel, police said Tuesday.

The suspect, whose name remains barred from publication, was arrested in Jerusalem on June 9 after a joint Shin Bet and police investigation.

Officials said he had been living in the Jerusalem area and was allegedly in contact with a person tied to Iranian intelligence.

According to police, the man was asked to carry out assignments in Israel over a period of several months.

Those tasks allegedly included filming and photographing locations that authorities described as sensitive. Investigators said he was paid for the work, with payments ranging from small sums to several hundred dollars.

A prosecutor’s declaration was submitted Tuesday, signaling that charges are expected to follow. Police said they intend to seek his detention until the end of the proceedings.

The case was kept under a court gag order until Tuesday, when police and the Shin Bet released limited details from the investigation.

Israeli officials did not identify the alleged Iranian handler or say how the suspect first came into contact with him.

The US Embassy was not reported to have issued an immediate public response.

Chief Inspector Amichai Fenta, a Jerusalem District police investigator, said the case fits into a broader pattern of Iranian efforts to recruit people inside Israel during the war.

“In recent months, several defendants have been exposed for espionage on behalf of the enemy, some of whom committed the acts during wartime and therefore assisted the enemy in actualizing its plots within Israeli territory,” Fenta said.

He said police and the Shin Bet would continue working to uncover similar cases and bring suspects to court.

“We will continue together with the Shin Bet to locate and expose offenses of this kind, to arrest and prosecute every person who harms and endangers the security of the state and its citizens,” Fenta said.

Israeli media reported that the suspect is expected to face charges related to contact with a foreign agent and harming state security.

The arrest comes amid a string of cases in which Israeli authorities say Iranian intelligence has tried to recruit citizens and residents through online approaches, often beginning with simple paid tasks before moving to more serious intelligence requests.

The Shin Bet has warned that Iranian operatives have increasingly used social media and messaging apps to find recruits in Israel. In previous cases, suspects were accused of photographing military facilities, ports, infrastructure, public officials’ homes and other potential targets.

The agency said in its most recent annual summary that dozens of people had been indicted in Iran-linked espionage cases and that more than 100 suspected Iranian recruitment or intelligence-gathering efforts had been disrupted.