Israeli Court Sentences Man to Record 13.5 Years for Spying for Iran

The Central District Court in Lod has sentenced Alexander Granovsky, a resident of Petah Tikva, to 13.5 years in prison for crimes against state security, marking the harshest penalty to date for collaboration with Iranian intelligence services. Granovsky pleaded guilty to all charges, which included contacting a foreign agent, providing information to the enemy, and multiple acts of vandalism and arson.

During his years of cooperation with Iranian intelligence, Granovsky set fire to eight vehicles across Israel, spray-painted "Children of Ruhollah," photographed an infrastructure site in central Israel, and documented the entrance to a settlement where Knesset member and former minister Benny Gantz resides. He also supplied Iranian agents with personal data of high-ranking Israeli military officials and facilitated contact between the agents and an acquaintance they intended to recruit.

Investigators revealed that Granovsky received payments ranging from several hundred shekels for graffiti to several thousand shekels for torching a car. Most of these offenses occurred in Hadera, Ra'anana, and Ashdod. He reportedly refused some assignments, including setting fire to a police car, bus, or truck, and gathering information on the residences of senior officials. Some tasks remained incomplete due to his recent arrest.

Granovsky's case is part of a broader investigation into Israelis recruited by Iranian agents, often through social media, to carry out various missions. Prosecutors stated that the sentence imposed is the most severe for this type of offense. Acquaintances described Granovsky as someone who struggled with work, engaged in drug dealing and criminal activities, and felt abandoned by the state after previous prison sentences, leading to further despair and criminal involvement.