{"id":220141,"date":"2026-07-23T18:41:16","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T18:41:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/220141\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T18:41:16","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T18:41:16","slug":"mossad-says-it-foiled-iranian-plot-to-infiltrate-israel-attack-senior-officials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/220141\/","title":{"rendered":"Mossad says it foiled Iranian plot to infiltrate Israel, attack senior officials"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Working with foreign intelligence services, Israel foiled an Iranian plot to send operatives into Israel to harm senior Israeli officials, the Mossad intelligence agency said in a statement on Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>The effort, led by Iran\u2019s Intelligence Ministry, involved turning to criminal organizations, who would in turn recruit people inside Israel or who could enter Israel for gathering intelligence on a target, then carrying out an attack.<\/p>\n<p>Two criminals living in Iran under the protection of the Intelligence Ministry \u2014 Baba Mahuzadeh Haji Jafan, also known as \u201cBabak\u201d; and Mehmet Nadim Ya\u2019it, also known as \u201cNadim\u201d \u2014 recruited Turut Ozkor, a criminal living in France who went by the nickname \u201cPhilip.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The handlers of Babak and Nadim in the Iranian Intelligence Ministry are named by the Mossad as Asadollah Behzad Oskhari, Vahid Matzoumi, Mohammad-Hossein Zoghi and Hamid Qasemi.<\/p>\n<p>Oskhari was killed in Israel\u2019s 12-day bombing campaign against Iran in 2025 and was a key figure in plots to attack Jewish and Israeli targets worldwide, said the Mossad.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\tGet The Times of Israel&#8217;s Daily Edition<br \/>\n\t\t\tby email and never miss our top stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/terms\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">terms<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Philip was tasked with recruiting a cell of foreign nationals who would enter Israel, it added.<\/p>\n<p>He traveled to Iran on several occasions to meet handlers and be paid, according to the statement.<\/p>\n<p>Philip was expelled by France, while Babak and Nadim remain in Iran.<\/p>\n<p>\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Image-from-iOS-1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-3866899 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Image-from-iOS-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1191\" height=\"376\"\/><\/a><br \/>\n\t\tA July 23, 2026, Mossad graphic of the alleged Iranian plot to assassinate senior Israeli officials. (Courtesy)<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDespite the attempt to avoid an Iranian fingerprint, the proxy method repeatedly demonstrates the carelessness of the operatives on the ground, leading to the exposure of their handlers in Iran,\u201d said the Mossad.<\/p>\n<p>The Mossad worked with Shin Bet and foreign intelligence agencies to uncover the network, the statement added.<\/p>\n<p>Numerous Iranian attempts to direct terror attacks inside of Israel in the past two years have been foiled, according to the Mossad.<\/p>\n<p>Israel previously said that since the start of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28, the IRGC has redoubled its efforts to establish terror cells abroad and carry out attacks.<\/p>\n<p>In April, the Mossad and Shin Bet announced that Israel had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/israel-announces-exposure-of-iranian-terror-cell-working-to-attack-israeli-western-sites-abroad\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">exposed an Iranian terror network<\/a> that targeted Israeli officials and assets around the world.<\/p>\n<p>At the time, the intelligence agencies said that senior operatives in the network had been killed during the US-Israeli campaign against Iran.<\/p>\n<p>Prior to that, in October 2025, the Mossad <a href=\"https:\/\/www.timesofisrael.com\/liveblog_entry\/mossad-offers-details-on-iranian-terror-network-behind-attacks-on-jewish-sites-worldwide\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">revealed information<\/a> about a transnational terror network run by the IRGC\u2019s Quds Force that it said was behind a string of recent attacks on Jewish sites in Western countries.<\/p>\n<p>&#13;<br \/>\n\t\t\t\tWe can&#8217;t do this work alone.\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img width=\"200\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Untitled-design-4-200x200.jpg\" class=\"attachment-square size-square wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n<p>There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n<p>As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can&#8217;t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. 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Sign in to stop seeing this<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Working with foreign intelligence services, Israel foiled an Iranian plot to send operatives into Israel to harm senior&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":220142,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3],"tags":[27587,34,11996,63438,16376,2478,5163],"class_list":["post-220141","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-iran","tag-2026-us-israel-war-with-iran","tag-iran","tag-iranian-intelligence","tag-iranian-terror","tag-islamic-revolutionary-guard-corps-irgc","tag-mossad","tag-quds-force"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@iran\/116970762218374519","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220141","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220141"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220141\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/220142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220141"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220141"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220141"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}