Iran has executed a man convicted of spying for Israel, the press organ of the Islamic Republic’s judiciary said on Saturday (December 20, 2025). “The death sentence of Aghil Keshavarz, convicted of espionage for the benefit of the Zionist regime, communication and cooperation with the regime, and photographing military and security facilities, was carried out after confirmation by the Supreme Court and after the completion of the judicial process,” Mizan Agency said.
According to the media, Keshavarz, portrayed as an “agent of Israel’s foreign intelligence agency Mossad,” was arrested in the northwestern city of Urumia last May when security officials surprised him taking photographs of the headquarters of an infantry division in the city. The detainee stated that he had traveled to Urumía to attend a scientific conference, “but when he checked his cell phone, a message was discovered from a number linked to the Zionist regime and from a person with the username ‘Osher’.”
Stricter legislation against espionage
“Further documents and evidence were subsequently seized during a search of his place of residence,” the Iranian judiciary said. The judiciary added that the convict admitted in his confessions that he had collaborated with the Israeli intelligence services “with the intention of harming the Islamic Republic and providing it with information about the country.”
In total, 16 people accused of spying for Israel have been executed since June, when both countries fought the so-called 12-Day War, the first before the fighting ended.
According to human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, the Islamic Republic, which typically imposes the maximum sentence of hanging, is the second most execution-prone country in the world after China. And it has increased the number of executions as part of its repressive policy. In October, Iran also passed a law toughening penalties for spying on behalf of the United States and Israel, including prison sentences for using services such as Starlink or collaborating with foreign media outlets deemed hostile.
LGC (AFP, EFE)
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