Jerusalem, 20 November, 2025 (TPS-IL) — Israeli authorities have charged a 21-year-old resident of Beer-Sheva with spying for Iran, alleging he carried out a series of missions on behalf of Iranian intelligence in the weeks before his arrest, it was cleared for publication on Thursday.
According to the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Israel Police, Rafael Reuveni — who was arrested in October — established contact with Iranian intelligence operatives and agreed to conduct activities directed against Israeli security. His interrogation showed that he acted “while understanding that he was operating under Iranian direction and that his actions were intended to harm the security of the state.”
The indictment, filed Thursday in the Beer-Sheva District Court, outlines a series of assignments carried out at the instruction of his handlers. Prosecutors say Reuveni sent photographs he took around Beer-Sheva, “hid a phone and a pack of cigarettes for them,” and retrieved a SIM card from a hiding place as part of efforts to maintain covert communication channels.
He was also allegedly asked to check the status of a firearm that had been stashed for later use. “In accordance with these instructions, Reuveni arrived at the hiding place, located an object that appeared to be a gun, and moved it from one point to another,” the indictment states. Officials said Reuveni received substantial payments via digital transfer in return for the missions.
Security officials described the case as part of a persistent pattern of Iranian attempts to recruit Israelis for surveillance and sabotage roles.
The announcement came days after prosecutors filed a separate indictment against Shimon Azarzar of Kiryat Yam, who is accused of sending sensitive photographs and coordinates of strategic sites to Iranian operatives and leveraging information obtained through his partner, a reserve-duty soldier.
More than 30 Israelis have been charged with espionage on behalf of Iran in 2025.
Israeli Police spokesperson Dean Elsdunne recently told The Press Service of Israel in July that after agents make contact with an Israeli, “It starts out slowly, with small jobs, and slowly the money increases, and they are asked to do more severe crimes as time goes on.”
Israel launched preemptive strikes against Iranian nuclear sites on June 13, citing intelligence that Tehran had reached “a point of no return” in its pursuit of nuclear weapons. According to Israeli defense officials, Iran has developed the capacity to rapidly enrich uranium and assemble nuclear bombs, with sufficient fissile material for up to 15 weapons.
Israeli intelligence also exposed a covert program to complete all components of a nuclear device. The strikes marked a dramatic escalation in what officials describe as a broader Iranian strategy combining nuclear development, missile proliferation, and proxy warfare aimed at Israel’s destruction.
During 12 days of fighting, Iranian missile strikes killed 28 Israelis and injured over 3,000.
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