Arab Israeli photographed sensitive sites on behalf of Iran, police say

Arab Israeli man arrested and charged after allegedly spying on behalf of Iran, sending his handlers the locations and photographs of sensitive sites.

By World Israel News Staff

Israeli security forces arrested an Israeli citizen from Tira on suspicion of maintaining contact with an Iranian operative and carrying out security-related tasks under his direction, the Shin Bet and Israel Police said Thursday.

The suspect was identified as Ahmad Fawaz Abdel Aziz Daas, a resident of the central Israeli city. He was arrested in a joint operation by the Shin Bet security agency and the Central District’s central investigative unit.

According to the Shin Bet and police, the investigation found that Daas was in contact with a hostile Iranian-linked figure while Israel was at war. As part of that contact, he allegedly sent locations and photographs of security sites and other points of interest in Israel.

Authorities said the information he provided could have caused “real harm” to state security and Israeli civilians.

At the end of the investigation, the Central District criminal prosecution filed a serious indictment against Daas in court on Thursday.

Officials described the case as a grave example of an Israeli citizen carrying out prohibited activity during wartime despite the potential damage to national security.

“This is serious activity by an Israeli citizen who carried out prohibited activity during a war, despite the fact that his activity could harm state security,” the Shin Bet and police said in a joint statement.

The agencies said the case joins a series of recent incidents showing repeated efforts by hostile terrorist and intelligence actors to recruit Israeli citizens to carry out missions aimed at harming Israel and its residents.

Israel’s security bodies, including the Shin Bet and police, again warned Israeli citizens and residents against maintaining contact with foreign actors or carrying out tasks on their behalf.

“All security bodies and law enforcement agencies will act to exhaust the full severity of the law against anyone involved in such activity,” the statement said.