Turkiye indicts locals allegedly hired as spies for Mossad 

Turkiye has filed charges against 20 people accused of spying for Israeli intelligence agency Mossad, Anadolu has reported. Prosecutors are seeking prison sentences ranging from 19 to 45 years each.

They allege that the defendants, 16 of whom are already under arrest, engaged in espionage on behalf of Mossad against foreign nationals living in Turkiye. According to the indictment, Mossad recruited the defendants through “help wanted” ads on social media and messaging apps.

The prosecutors claim that the defendants gathered and shared confidential information, including the addresses and images of Palestinian citizens and Hamas-affiliated individuals, with Israeli intelligence officers. The indictment suggests that this information could potentially be used for future operations, including executions or kidnappings.

The accused are alleged to have received payment for their services through wire transfers, cryptocurrency and international money transfers, methods reportedly used by terrorist groups.

One defendant, Amal Sallami Ep Siala, said that she was contacted initially by someone claiming to be from Germany who offered her money for her work. She said that she did some test videos and later got tasks from another individual, including filming Istanbul’s Sulaymaniyah Mosque and taking photographs of an apartment complex in the city. Siala also said that she prepared and sent a report about which mobile phone companies provide a better service. Claiming that she didn’t even know what Mossad is, Siala said that she carried out the tasks she was assigned to earn money, not for espionage purposes.

Another defendant, Hazem Mounir Amin Elgayyar, reportedly worked at a health directorate in Istanbul and allegedly shared information with Israeli intelligence about Palestinians wounded in Israel’s months-long war in Gaza who were taken to Turkiye for medical treatment.

The indictment characterises the alleged offences as “political or military espionage”. The trial is set to begin in November.

Two weeks ago, the Istanbul Police arrested Liridon Rexhepi, whom the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT) identified as the head of Mossad’s financial network in Turkiye. In July, the MIT said that it had exposed a vast “ghost” network of dozens of operatives working for Mossad, while in January Turkish intelligence agents said that they carried out an operation against Mossad in eight cities around the country.

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