{"id":25604,"date":"2025-08-25T07:13:19","date_gmt":"2025-08-25T07:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/?p=25604"},"modified":"2025-08-25T07:13:20","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T07:13:20","slug":"eli-cohens-inside-iran-how-israels-war-exposed-deep-infiltration-and-intelligence-gaps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/25\/eli-cohens-inside-iran-how-israels-war-exposed-deep-infiltration-and-intelligence-gaps\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Eli Cohens inside Iran’: How Israel’s war exposed deep infiltration and intelligence gaps"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

When Israel<\/a> launched a surprise 12-day assault on Iran<\/a> in June, Tehran and the world\u00a0were caught off guard. Few anticipated such a move, particularly while Iran was engaged in sensitive nuclear negotiations with the United States.<\/p>\n

Sources told Middle East Eye that a handful of countries had warned Iranian authorities about suspicious Israeli movements. Yet despite heightened alert levels, Tehran was ultimately blindsided when the attack materialised.<\/p>\n

The nature of the attack and the ease with which it was executed sent shockwaves through Iran\u2019s political and security establishment. Behind the scenes, covert Mossad agents, paid informants, and a network of operatives – many allegedly embedded among Afghan migrants – are believed to have facilitated the strikes.<\/p>\n

An Iranian source in the conservatives’ camp told MEE that Israel had long stationed agents inside Iran, observing the movements of officials. The source added that a series of cyber intrusions into Iranian banks and government institutions may have compromised personal data – including phone numbers and addresses of high-level figures and their families – paving the way for deeper penetration.<\/p>\n

“There have been some Eli Cohens inside the Islamic Republic too,” the source remarked, referencing the infamous Israeli spy executed in Syria<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Cohens<\/h3>\n

In 2021, former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad publicly revealed that the head of the Israeli desk at Iran\u2019s Ministry of Intelligence had, in fact, been a Mossad agent – and was later arrested.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow could the top official responsible for tracking Israeli spies turn out to be one himself?\u201d Ahmadinejad asked at the time. \u201cIs it even conceivable that a single person was solely running Israeli operations inside Iran, without any oversight or team?\u201d<\/p>\n

Just four days into the war, on 17 June, Israel killed Iran’s highest-ranking military officer, Ali Shadmani, who was leading the Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters – effectively the country’s war command centre.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n
Iranians backed the state against Israel. Will it now reward them?<\/div>\n

Read More \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Shadmani’s daughter told Iranian media: \u201cMy father was martyred in a direct confrontation with the Zionist regime.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cMany assume he died in a random air strike, but he was assassinated in a targeted operation.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that after his death, Hebrew-language media celebrated the killing of the Islamic Republic\u2019s \u201cwar commander\u201d and \u201cclosest military figure to the Supreme Leader.\u201d<\/p>\n

Further revelations came from Fayaz Zahed, a member of the Government Media Council, during a televised interview.<\/p>\n

Zahed cited three separate incidents to highlight what he described as deep Israeli infiltration into Iran\u2019s security establishment.<\/p>\n

In the first, he said IRGC commander Hossein Salami warned the head of Iran\u2019s state broadcaster, Peyman Jebelli, at 1:30\u202fam on 13 June, the first day of the war, that Israel was planning an attack that night. Salami was killed in an Israeli strike just 90 minutes later,\u00a0 suggesting that senior Iranian officials may have been aware of the impending attack but were unable – or failed – to prevent it.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\"Iran's<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi mourns next to the coffin of IRGC commander Hossein Salami, during a state funeral procession at Enghelab (Revolution) Square in Tehran on 28 June 2025 (AFP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/span><\/p>\n

In another case, Zahed questioned who had directed IRGC intelligence chief Mohammad Kazemi to the building that was struck by Israel two days later, implying that Mossad agents had deliberately led him into the trap.<\/p>\n

Zahed also referred to a third incident, in which nine Revolutionary Guard generals were reportedly gathered at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He said Israel appeared to have known about the meeting in advance and waited until a tenth general arrived before launching the strike.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe claim that nine people were gathered in a meeting at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and that the operation began only after one person\u2019s delayed arrival, is no trivial matter,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Ministry of Intelligence and IRGC intelligence must conduct a serious and thorough investigation. Without addressing the root of the problem, there’s no guarantee it won\u2019t happen again. The culprits may still be in place, ready to finish what they started.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n
After ceasefire, Iran is preparing for the long war with Israel<\/div>\n

Read More \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

A key vulnerability, according to insiders, has been the influx of undocumented Afghan migrants into Iran.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfghans in Iran are not Israeli spies,\u201d one source in government said, \u201cbut the large number of undocumented individuals who crossed illegally, particularly after the Taliban took power, created a major opportunity for Israeli intelligence.\u201d<\/p>\n

Former president Ebrahim Raisi\u2019s decision to open Iran\u2019s borders at the time is now being viewed in retrospect as a major security miscalculation.<\/p>\n

The source added that some Afghan migrants were unknowingly paid by Israeli operatives to assemble parts later used in drone attacks from within Iranian territory.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey didn\u2019t know who they were working for – they were just following instructions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Infiltration from within<\/h3>\n

One former security official described to MEE how Israel began penetrating Iran\u2019s intelligence infrastructure nearly two decades ago by exploiting \u201cideological vulnerabilities\u201d within the system.<\/p>\n

He pointed to the election of Ahmadinejad in 2005 as a turning point.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat period saw a rupture in the intelligence apparatus. Many of the seasoned experts who had gained experience during the 1980s were pushed aside. A new generation – lacking field experience – took over. That significantly weakened us,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He added that the early 2000s also saw the expansion of Israeli intelligence bases in neighbouring countries.<\/p>\n

Following the 2009 Green Movement protests – labelled \u201csedition\u201d by hardliners – many individuals advanced rapidly through the security ranks by demonstrating loyalty to the supreme leader and hostility toward the protests.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat environment likely allowed foreign assets to rise through the system unnoticed,\u201d the source said.<\/p>\n

He also criticised the ideological shift in Iran\u2019s security focus: \u201cThe more ideological the system became, the more it prioritised cracking down on unveiled women and dissidents instead of foreign spies.\u201d<\/p>\n

The source noted that, “The emergence of overlapping and competing security bodies further fragmented the intelligence landscape, leading to internal confusion and jurisdictional conflicts.”<\/p>\n

Fallout and suspicion<\/h3>\n

In the weeks following the war, the Ministry of Intelligence issued a statement declaring that it had thwarted assassination plots against 23 senior officials and arrested 20 Mossad agents.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, one name has surfaced in the public\u2019s mind: Ali Shamkhani, the former head of Iran\u2019s Supreme National Security Council and an adviser to the supreme leader, who was initially thought to have been killed<\/a> in an Israeli strike. He later appeared on state television unharmed, claiming he had been trapped under rubble for hours – a statement that fuelled rumours and suspicion.<\/p>\n

‘The more ideological the system became, the more it prioritised cracking down on unveiled women and dissidents instead of foreign spies’<\/p>\n

– Former security official<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI looked closely at his face on TV,\u201d said former MP Gholamali Jafarzadeh Imenabadi. \u201cThere was no sign that he\u2019d been trapped under rubble for three hours.\u201d<\/p>\n

MP Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani further fuelled speculation, saying: \u201cThere are serious ambiguities about Mr. Shamkhani\u2019s case. Some claim his son warned him to leave the building before the attack even began.\u201d<\/p>\n

Notably, two of Shamkhani\u2019s aides have been arrested in the past decade on charges of spying for Israel.<\/p>\n

As the dust settles from Israel\u2019s most controversial operation in years, Iran\u2019s intelligence and political leaders face growing pressure to account for what many now believe was a deep and long-running infiltration – one that may not yet be over.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Israel launched a surprise 12-day assault on Iran in June, Tehran and the world\u00a0were caught off guard. Few anticipated such a move, particularly while Iran was engaged in sensitive nuclear negotiations with the United States. Sources told Middle East Eye that a handful of countries had warned Iranian authorities about suspicious Israeli movements. Yet […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25605,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25604","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25604","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25604"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25604\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":33705,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25604\/revisions\/33705"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25605"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25604"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25604"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cissar.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25604"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}