Tajik national charged in alleged Iran spying case after filming Haifa Port, Elbit facility

An indictment has been filed against Bekhruz Shakhriv Dodobaev, a 33-year-old Tajik citizen with an expired temporary Israeli residency permit, for allegedly acting as an agent for Iranian intelligence. State prosecutors allege that Dodobaev gathered and relayed sensitive information concerning missile impact sites, Haifa Port, and an Elbit Systems facility to Iranian intelligence contacts, receiving cryptocurrency payments in return.

The charges filed at the Tel Aviv District Court include contact with a foreign agent, nine counts of communicating information that could benefit an enemy, and four counts of communicating information to an enemy with the intent to harm state security. According to the indictment, Dodobaev was initially contacted in late 2025 or early 2026 through Telegram by an individual named "Anna," who offered him payment for photographing cars before revealing a connection to an Iranian organization.

Prosecutors claim that from February to June, Dodobaev was directed by three handlers identified as Iranian foreign agents, using the names Anna, Uri, and Polina. His alleged assignments included photographing ships and the shoreline at Haifa Port, and filming an Elbit Systems Cyclone facility in Ahihud. The indictment also states that Dodobaev attempted to expand the recruitment network for Iranian handlers in Israel by distributing job advertisements in migrant neighborhoods. He briefly expressed fear of imprisonment to one handler in April.

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Dodobaev briefly told one handler in April that he feared imprisonment