Israel Calls on Jewish Clergy to Counter Iranian Intelligence Recruitment Networks

As cases related to espionage allegations for the Islamic Republic have increased, Israel has expanded the scope of its preventive measures and asked prominent Jewish religious leaders to warn about the efforts of Iranian intelligence agencies to recruit Israeli citizens. This action comes as Israeli security officials report an increase in intelligence activities by the Islamic Republic following the Gaza war and direct confrontation between the two countries.

In response to the rising number of cases related to what it describes as “recruitment of Israeli citizens by Islamic Republic intelligence agencies,” Israel has asked Jewish religious leaders to play a more active role in raising public awareness. This measure has been described as part of a broader campaign by the Israeli government to counter the Islamic Republic’s intelligence efforts within the country.

According to a report by the New York Times, Israeli security officials have asked several prominent rabbis and respected leaders of Orthodox and Haredi Jewish communities to warn their followers about the danger of unwitting cooperation with the Islamic Republic’s intelligence networks. This request came after an increase in cases in which Israeli citizens were arrested on suspicion of intelligence cooperation with Iran.

Rabbi Yigal Cohen, a member of the senior council of Jewish clergy, confirmed that Israeli security agencies asked him to participate in this campaign. In a video message to his followers, he said: “There is nothing worse than a believing Jew betraying his own people by aiding the enemy’s objectives.”

Alongside him, other recognized figures from the Orthodox Jewish community, including Yisrael Cohen, a radio commentator and host, and Mendel Unger, a journalist, have also issued warning messages. Some of these warnings were published in Yiddish, a language still common among part of Israel’s Haredi community and taught in the community’s religious schools.

According to Yisrael Cohen, the publication of initial reports about the recruitment of some religious Jews by networks affiliated with the Islamic Republic shocked the Haredi community, but this same issue revealed the necessity of widespread awareness to prevent such incidents from recurring.

Isaac Yosef, the Chief Rabbi of Mizrahi Jews in Israel, has also joined the campaign and asked his followers to be vigilant against any suspicious offers.

Israeli security officials believe that the Islamic Republic’s intelligence activities to recruit Israeli citizens have increased significantly since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, and especially over the past two years, as the confrontation between Tehran and Tel Aviv has shifted from a “shadow war” to direct opposition.

According to Israeli police and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), Islamic Republic intelligence operatives typically contact individuals through social media and messengers such as Telegram. Initially, they present themselves as employers and offer sums of money in cryptocurrency in exchange for performing simple and apparently harmless tasks. According to security officials, after gaining the trust of individuals, they are asked to perform more sensitive missions.

Based on Israeli police announcements, the range of individuals arrested on suspicion of cooperation with the Islamic Republic includes military personnel, civilians, Arab citizens, and immigrants. Among those arrested are at least nine young religious men. One of the most recent cases involves a 20-year-old American who had moved to Jerusalem to study at a Jewish religious seminary and was arrested last month.

Israeli police announced that prosecutors have issued indictments in approximately 60 cases, though the number of individuals whose cases are still under investigation remains unclear. Among the cases reviewed so far, only a few defendants have received final sentences. The most recent case involved an Israeli soldier who was sentenced to five years in prison for sending images of certain locations to officials affiliated with the Islamic Republic.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Prison Service has also adopted special security measures for holding suspects in these cases. Reports indicate that these individuals are held in separate sections and under strict restrictions, with their contact with other prisoners and the outside world minimized. One of these special sections has been established in Damon Prison, near Haifa.

In this regard, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s Minister of National Security, has ordered that suspects in these cases be treated like the most dangerous Hamas terrorists.

Although Israeli officials have not yet released details about the extent of possible damage resulting from these cases, they emphasize that the Islamic Republic’s efforts to conduct intelligence infiltration within Israel constitute a serious security threat, and combating it is a priority for the country’s security agencies.