Iran executes man accused of spying for Israel

An Iranian man convicted of espionage and intelligence cooperation with Israel was executed 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.

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 a Revolutionary Guards colonel in 2022.

“During his two years as a spy… he was responsible for important actions, including supporting terrorist operations and being present at the scene of the assassination of Sayad Khodai,” state media said. It said the defendant also provided operational support for an attack on an industrial center in Isfahan, affiliated with the Iranian Defense Ministry.

The state media reports said Langarneshin had confessed to the charges. Reuters was not able to reach a representative for comment.

Earlier this week, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Israel of seeking to derail Iran-US nuclear talks, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejecting the idea of a deal merely limiting Tehran’s uranium enrichment and pushing for the full dismantlement of its nuclear infrastructure.

Iran does not recognize Israel and is sworn to its destruction. Tehran supports anti-Israeli terror groups across the region, such as Hezbollah and Hamas. It denies seeking a nuclear weapon, saying that its uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes.