Tel Aviv, Sep 19 : A Jewish-Israeli civilian was arrested last month on suspicion of being recruited by Iranian operatives to assist in an assassination plot targeting senior Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defence Minister Yoav Galant, and Shin Bet head Ronan Bar, the Israeli authorities announced on Thursday.

The suspect, identified as Moti Maman, 73, from Ashkelon, was charged on Thursday, after which the security forces announced the details.

In a detailed post on X, the Israel Police revealed that the suspect, a businessman with ties to Turkey and Iran, had lived in Turkey for an extended period and maintained business and social relations with Turkish and Iranian individuals.

In April of this year, the businessman was allegedly approached by intermediaries linked to Iranian intelligence through Turkish contacts, Andrey Farouk Aslan and Junayd Aslan. He was introduced to an Iranian businessman named Eddie, who was unable to leave Iran and conducted meetings via intermediaries in Turkey to facilitate further contact.

In May, the Israeli citizen reportedly travelled to Turkey again and was smuggled by car across the Turkish-Iranian border near the city of Van. Once in Iran, he met with Eddie and an Iranian official named Haja, who was described as connected to Iranian security forces.

During these meetings, the Israeli was allegedly offered several security-related tasks by the Iranian regime, including transferring weapons or funds, photographing strategic locations in Israel, and issuing threats against Israeli citizens, according to the police.

The security forces further revealed that he was also reportedly asked to assist in "carrying out assassination plots against Netanyahu, Galant, Bar, or other senior officials."

"Also, the Iranian intelligence officials asked to look into the possibility of the assassination of other senior figures, such as former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and other public figures, in their view this as revenge for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil in July 2024, which was attributed by the Iranian authorities to the State of Israel. The Israeli citizen demanded an advance payment of one million dollars before performing any action," the post on X read.

According to Israeli authorities, the suspect demanded an advance payment of $1 million for his involvement in these activities but did not perform any of the requested tasks.

The plot escalated during further meetings in Iran, where Iranian intelligence officials reiterated their assassination proposals and explored other potential actions, such as "recruiting a Mossad agent to act as a double agent" and locating Russian and American officials for elimination, the Israeli security forces claimed.

Before leaving Iran, the suspect reportedly received 5,000 euros from Eddie and an Iranian intelligence representative for his participation in the meetings. However, the authorities arrested Maman upon his return.

/IANS