Iran executes man accused of spying for Israel

Iran executed a man accused of spying for Israel, according to a report from state media on Wednesday that identified him as Babak Shahbazi.

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 its operations in the country.

Executions of Iranians convicted of spying for Israel have significantly increased this year, with at least nine death sentences carried out in recent months.

State media said Shahbazi had worked alongside Esmaeil Fekri, another convict executed in June for spying for Israel since early 2022.

Shahbazi was accused of using his position as a contractor installing cooling devices to collect information from sensitive locations such as server rooms as well as centers linked to the military and security apparatus.

The defendant’s lawyer had requested an appeal to the Supreme Court, which rejected the request.

Yasamin Shahbazi, the daughter of Babak Shahbazi, reported that her father has been transferred to solitary confinement in Qezel Hesar Prison for the purpose of carrying out his death sentence.#BabakShahbazi, a political prisoner held in Qezel Hesar Prison, had been sentenced… pic.twitter.com/muWSgzizx0

— Abdorrahman Boroumand Center (@IranRights_org) September 16, 2025

The New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran posted to X that Shahbazi’s mother had arrived at the prison where he was being held and appealed to the public and the international community to save her son.

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Iranian authorities have transferred political prisoner Babak Shahbazi to solitary confinement after the Supreme Court rejected his request for a retrial for the third time, raising grave concerns that his execution may be imminent, according to his family.

His mother… pic.twitter.com/vPu1WpjueB

— Center for Human Rights in Iran (@ICHRI) September 16, 2025

The CHRI reported that Shahbazi was convicted in an “unfair trial” after “torture, prolonged solitary confinement, and forced confessions.”