Two IDF reservists, one of them serving in Iron Dome unit, charged with spying for Iran

The defendants, Yuri Eliasfov and Georgi Andreyev, both 21, are charged with contact with a foreign agent, transferring classified info and aiding the enemy during wartime

Two IDF reservists arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, Yuri Eliasfov (L) and Georgi Andreyev (R), appear on video at a court hearing to extend their remand on January 27, 2025. (Screenshot from Ynet)
Two IDF reservists arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, Yuri Eliasfov (L) and Georgi Andreyev (R), appear on video at a court hearing to extend their remand on January 27, 2025. (Screenshot from Ynet)

State prosecutors filed indictments at a Haifa court Friday against two IDF reservists for alleged espionage on behalf of Iran in return for financial compensation, according to a statement.

The defendants, Yuri Eliasfov and Georgi Andreyev, both aged 21 and residents of the Haifa suburb of Kiryat Yam, were charged with serious offenses including contact with a foreign agent, transferring classified information and aiding the enemy during wartime.

The police and Shin Bet security service announced their arrests early this week.

The two were in contact with an Iranian agent identified in the charge sheet as “Boaz,” and carried out actions intended to harm state security, according to the charge sheet.

Prosecutors said the two men have a long-standing friendship.

Eliasfov, who served in the military’s Iron Dome unit, is accused of passing along highly sensitive material about the missile defense technology to his Iranian handler, including photos and video of the radar screen.

A boy rides a donkey near one of the batteries of Israel’s Iron Dome missile defence system at a village not recognized by Israeli authorities in the southern Negev desert on April 14, 2024. (AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP)

The indictment accused him of offering to sell video footage of the missile defense system to “Boaz” for $10,000, including an $800 down payment.

Andreyev served in the Air Force’s operational headquarters, according to the charge sheet.

The two are accused of spray-painting pro-Iranian graffiti and hanging banners in Tel Aviv carrying the slogan “Children of Ruhollah,” referring to Ruhollah Khomeini, Iran’s first supreme leader following the Islamic Revolution.

According to the Ynet news site, Eliasfov initially reached out to the Iranian agent, finding him while looking for ways to make money. The two first came into contact in September, Haaretz reported.

Over the past two years, Iranian intelligence operatives have ramped up their efforts to recruit ordinary Israelis as spies in exchange for money.

Moti Maman, accused of being recruited by Iran to advance an assassination plot of Israel’s prime minister, defense minister, or the head of the Shin Bet, is seen in a court in Beersheba on September 19, 2024. (Dudu Greenspan/Flash90)

Last December, the police arrested nearly 30 Israelis, mostly Jewish citizens, for espionage activities on behalf of Iran.

In most of these cases, the suspects began by carrying out small, innocuous tasks that gradually grew into more serious offenses, like intelligence gathering and assassination plots.

In October 2024, seven Israelis were arrested for allegedly photographing and collecting information on IDF bases and facilities, including the Nevatim and Ramat David air bases, which were targeted by both Iran and Hezbollah in 2024.

Police have cautioned Israeli citizens and residents against “engaging in contact with foreign operatives and carrying out tasks for them,” and have vowed to take harsh legal action against those involved in such activities.

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