The Shin Bet and Israel Police this month arrested Yaakov Perl, 49, a dual American-Israeli citizen, who had traveled from abroad to Israel to carry out intelligence gathering missions on public figures under the direction of Iranian intelligence. Perl was instructed by Iran to photograph the homes of former IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.
Perl had been living in Morocco in recent years and was detained on suspicion of various security offenses involving ties with Iranian operatives and carrying out missions on their behalf. He received $15,000 for his activities.
While residing in Morocco, Perl was associated with the Satmar community, though he claimed he did not agree with its ideology. During his interrogation by the Shin Bet’s security division, he admitted that everything he was asked to do was intended to help the Iranians harm those individuals.
The joint investigation by the Shin Bet and Lahav 433 revealed that in 2017, while living in Morocco, Perl contacted the Iranian Embassy in Morocco by phone and requested asylum for himself and his family. After receiving no response, in 2023, while still in Morocco, he began following Iranian news outlets on Telegram and publishing content against Israel and Zionism.
Iranian spies. Photo: GettyImages GettyImages
Following an article he published in January 2025 in support of Hezbollah following the funeral of its Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah, Perl was contacted by an Iranian operative who offered to collaborate with him, and Perl agreed.
The investigation also found that after agreeing to cooperate with Iran, and before arriving in Israel, Perl made several attempts to recruit individuals in Israel and abroad to help the Iranians collect intelligence. When these attempts failed, he agreed to come to Israel himself, under his handlers’ instructions, to carry out the missions. To that end, he renewed his Israeli passport and arrived in Israel in July 2025.
Shortly after entering Israel, he began carrying out a series of intelligence gathering assignments directed by Iranian intelligence, passing along information about Israeli public figures and citizens, including Herzi Halevi and Itamar Ben Gvir.
As part of his activities, Perl also took photos and videos of various streets and locations in Israel, and was paid in cryptocurrency.
The investigation determined that Perl carried out these missions with full awareness that he was acting on behalf of Iranian intelligence and that his actions endangered Israel’s national security, motivated by his belief that he must act against Israel and Zionism.
An indictment against Perl is expected to be filed in the coming days.