Iran Executes Man Accused Of Spying On Israeli

Illustration. (Pixabay/peterbwiberg)

JAKARTA - Iran executed the death penalty of a man accused of spying for Israel, state media reported Wednesday, the latest execution of a series of executions that increased this year after a 12-day war between the two countries.

Mizan, a court-owned news outlet, identified the man as Babak Shahbazi, claiming he was selling information about Iran's data center and security installations to Israeli agents.

Activists say Shahbazi was detained for writing a letter to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky offering to join the Ukrainian military.

Shahbazi is accused of using his position as a contractor who installs a cooling device to collect information from sensitive locations such as server rooms as well as military-related centers and security forces.

"He decided to sell information to Mossad in exchange for money and shelter in foreign countries," Mizan reports, claiming he asked for $120 million in cash or digital currency for the job.

"Shahbazi said he had access cards to several sensitive and important complexes, that his car was not checked, and that he could carry bombs to the desired centers and Mossad would trust him after a few years," the report added.

The appeal to the Supreme Court was rejected, which led to Shahbazi's execution on Tuesday, Mizan said.

Iran is known to support Russia's war in Ukraine by supplying drones to Moscow.

Iran's human rights group based in Oslo said Shahbazi's letter to President Zelensky was "used as an example of espionage for Israel".

Involved in a shadow war that has been going on for decades with Israel, Iran has executed many individuals accused of assisting Israel's Mossad intelligence service.

The number of executions has increased this year, with at least nine death sentences having been carried out in recent months.

Earlier this year, Israel launched air warfare with Iran, killing about 1,100 people, including many military commanders. Iran responded by launching a missile attack on Israel.

State media reported that Shahbazi had worked with Esmaeil Fekri, another man who was executed in June and was accused of spying for Israel.

Iran carried out an "worrying level" execution in 2024, according to the United Nations, with at least 975 people killed.