Monday June 16, 2025|
Iran’s judiciary said on Monday it hanged a man arrested in 2023 and convicted of being a spy for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, as fighting raged between the two foes.
The man, identified as Esmaeil Fekri, was arrested in 2023 and charged with serious crimes, including “corruption on Earth” and “moharebeh” a term used in Iranian law to describe “waging war against God.”
According to the judiciary, Fekri’s death sentence was carried out following the completion of all legal proceedings and final approval from Iran’s Supreme Court.
The execution comes as both countries accuse each other of intensifying espionage and military operations.
On Sunday, Iranian authorities reported the arrest of two individuals in Alborz province, near Tehran, on suspicion of links to Mossad.
In a similar development the same day, Israeli officials said they had detained two of their own citizens for allegedly working with Iranian intelligence services.
The backdrop to these developments is a dramatic rise in hostilities.
On Friday, Israel launched a surprise military offensive targeting what it described as Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure.
Iranian officials report that the strikes have killed at least 224 people, including senior military officers, nuclear scientists, and civilians.
In response, Iran has launched waves of drone and missile attacks into Israeli territory, which, according to figures from the Israeli prime minister’s office, have resulted in at least 24 deaths.
Iran does not recognise the state of Israel and has long accused it of sabotage operations and targeted assassinations aimed at undermining its nuclear program.
