Ashkelon resident allegedly recruited by Tehran to help assassinate Israeli politicians
A Jewish man has been arrested for allegedly taking part in an Iranian plot to assassinate senior Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli authorities said.
Israeli citizen Moti Maman, 73, was arrested last month, but police and Israel's Shin Bet security agency only made details of the case public on Thursday. According to investigators, Maman, a resident of Ashkelon, traveled to Iran twice and accepted money to act as an Iranian agent.
Maman had lived in Türkiye for a long time and had business and social connections with Turkish and Iranian citizens, authorities said. Through two of his Turkish contacts, he agreed to meet with a “Businessman living in Iran named Eddy” In April, the Shin Bet reported, Maman finally traveled to Iran, where she reportedly met with Iranian security officials.
From then on, Maman was allegedly offered tasks such as placing money and weapons in specific locations, gathering information and contacting other Israeli citizens, Shin Bet said.
In August, Maman traveled to Iran for a second time, where she was told that… “pre-emptive assassination attacks” about Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, the security agency said.
According to the Shin Bet, Maman demanded a million dollars in advance to participate, something that the Iranian intelligence services refused, but he would have accepted 5,000 euros to attend the meetings.
Maman's lawyer said his client had committed a “error of judgment in the context of his business,” and noted that he had already greatly assisted the Israeli security services.
Israel and Iran have repeatedly accused each other of orchestrating assassinations on each other's territory. Most recently, Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed when he visited Tehran in July. The Islamic Republic has blamed Israel for Haniyeh's death. However, Israel has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement.
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