An Iranian man convicted of espionage and intelligence cooperation with Israel was executed by hanging on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported, at a time of high-stakes nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
Entangled in a decades-long shadow war with Israel, Iran has put to death many individuals it accuses of having links with Israel’s Mossad intelligence service and facilitating the latter’s operations in the country, notably assassinations or acts of sabotage meant to undermine its nuclear program.
The Iranian news source described the individual as a “senior spy and field supporter of several operations” by the Israeli intelligence agency.
Defendant was accused of assisting in death of an IRGC Colonel three years ago
According to Iran’s judiciary media outlet Mizan, the defendant identified as Mohsen Langarneshin was accused of involvement in several cases, including the death of Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Colonel Hassan Sayad Khodai in 2022. The New York Times reported a few days after Khodai’s death that Israel informed the US of its responsibility for his assassination.
“During his two years as a spy (…) he was responsible for important actions, including supporting terrorist operations and being present at the scene of Khodai’s assassination,” state media said. It said the defendant also provided operational support for an attack on an industrial centre in Isfahan, affiliated with the Defense Ministry.
The state media reports said Langarneshin had confessed to the charges. Reuters was not able to reach a representative for comment.
Fars reported that Langarneshin was employed by the Israeli agency in October 2020, and after undergoing various training courses, carried out his first mission for the Mossad in January 2021. He had also met with senior Mossad officers twice, once in Georgia and again in Nepal, receiving missions on those occasions, according to the report.
Langarneshin had allegedly supplied anonymous SIM cards and cellphones to connect domestic agents to senior Mossad officers, the Fars report added, and even received cash from operatives from the Israeli agency at certain locations to deliver to agents inside Iran.
Earlier this week, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi accused Israel of seeking to derail Iran-US nuclear talks, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejecting the idea of limiting Tehran’s uranium enrichment via a deal and pushing for the full dismantlement of its nuclear infrastructure.
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