Israeli Arab Sentenced for Spying for Iran, Targeting Former Defense Minister

The Haifa District Court has sentenced Fares Abu al-Hijja, a 32-year-old Israeli Arab, to 55 months in prison, approximately 4.5 years, for carrying out assignments for Iranian intelligence. He also received a 24-month suspended sentence and a fine of 10,000 shekels. Abu al-Hijja admitted to contact with a foreign agent as part of a plea deal with the prosecution.

According to Israeli public broadcaster Kan, Abu al-Hijja was initially given simple tasks by his Iranian handlers, but after successfully completing them, he was entrusted with gathering information near the home of former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Court documents indicate that in October 2025, Abu al-Hijja connected with a user named "Martin Luther" on Telegram, meeting in a group for "off-the-books job searches." His initial assignments involved purchasing mobile phones and chargers, installing messaging apps, and hiding the devices in pre-arranged locations in Haifa and Kiryat Haim, photographing and sending the locations to his handler.

Later tasks included leaving an envelope with a cryptocurrency access code, an English message, and 50 shekels in Zichron Yaakov, and photographing the area around the "Noir" cafe in Tel Aviv. The assignments escalated, and in January 2026, Abu al-Hijja was sent to the moshav Amikam to photograph four locations near Gallant's residence. He was arrested shortly after transmitting these photos. The indictment states that by this point, Abu al-Hijja suspected his contact was with Iranian intelligence but continued the work for financial gain, receiving approximately $3,600 in cryptocurrency.

The prosecution sought a sentence of five to eight years, emphasizing that Abu al-Hijja acted during wartime and that his intelligence gathering could have severely harmed Israeli security. The defense argued that Abu al-Hijja was unaware of the connection between the Amikam sites and Yoav Gallant. Gallant had previously been forced to leave his home in Amikam due to a direct security threat, with the house remaining empty and guarded for over a year.

Abu al-Hijja's sentencing occurs amid a rise in investigations into Israelis suspected of collaborating with Iran and other hostile entities. Recent cases include a man from Tamra suspected of aiding Hamas and contacting Iranian intelligence, and another man from Majd al-Krum accused of taking security-related assignments from a Lebanese woman identified as a foreign agent. In August, a couple from Ashkelon was indicted for espionage for Iran, accused of systematically gathering intelligence on security personnel residences and civilian and military infrastructure from April to July 2026.

Israeli security forces estimate a sharp increase in Iranian recruitment attempts since 2023, with dozens of cases involving Israeli citizens contacting Iranian intelligence structures uncovered over the past two and a half years. Reports cite 37 uncovered incidents and dozens of indictments for working for Iran. While tens of Israelis have been detained and over 50 indicted for suspected cooperation with Iranian intelligence since early 2023, the number of confirmed convictions remains significantly lower as many cases are still under investigation or trial.