US EditionBeit Shemesh Resident Sentenced To 3 Years Jail For Iranian Espionage Activities
Elimelech Stern was sentenced for spying during wartime amid a broader crackdown with over 30 arrests in two years, highlighting ongoing Iranian recruitment efforts in Israel.
- On Thursday, the Jerusalem District Court sentenced Elimelech Stern, 22, a Vizhnitz Hasid from Beit Shemesh, to three years in prison and fined him NIS 10,000 after convicting him of contacting a foreign agent and conspiracy to make threats.
- Contact began over Telegram when Stern, in debt, searched online for income; 'Anna', the online handler who posed as a Canadian activist, escalated tasks and paid recruits via Bitcoin and digital wallets.
- Court records show Stern carried out missions including delivering a package with a severed animal head, but he refused violent orders and did not meet handlers face to face.
- Prosecutors argued for a harsher term, seeking deterrence and considering an appeal to the Supreme Court, while Israel Police and the Shin Bet warned against contact with foreign intelligence operatives.
- The authorities say the case fits a broader pattern with more than 30 arrests over the past two years and formal indictments expected after January 2026 Jerusalem-area suspects' arrests.
11 Articles
11 Articles
Israeli brothers arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran for crypto payments
The two suspects, young men from Beitar Illit and Modi’in Illit, were recruited via Telegram for paid missions for Iranian handlers, investigators say, and knew they were working for an enemy state; the probe found they also provided fabricated information about Mossad agents
Israeli man convicted of spying for Iran sentenced to three years in prison
Stern was convicted following a full evidentiary hearing of contact with a foreign agent and conspiracy to threaten, after the court rejected his claim that he lacked the required criminal intent.
Beit Shemesh Resident Sentenced To 3 Years Jail For Iranian Espionage Activities
JERUSALEM (VINnews) — The Jerusalem District Court sentenced Bet Shemesh resident Elimelech Stern on Thursday morning to three years in prison. He was convicted last September of contact with a foreign agent and conspiracy to make threats, after carrying out assignments for Iranian operatives. He was also fined and given a suspended sentence. Judge Hanna […]
Israeli Hasidic man sentenced to three years in jail for spying for Iran
Judge said she balanced mitigating factors with the need for deterrence. By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News The Jerusalem District Court on Thursday sentenced an ultra-Orthodox Israeli man to three years in prison and fined him NIS 10,000 for spying for Iran during the Israel-Hamas war. Elimelech Stern, 22, a Vizhnitz Hasid from Beit Shemesh, was convicted of contacting a foreign agent and conspiracy to make threats. Prosecutors had sought a …
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