Over the past year, Israel has witnessed a troubling rise in espionage cases linked to Iran. At least 33 Israelis have been indicted in the last seven months for collaborating with Iranian agents—most of them starting with what seemed like harmless acts: scrawling anti-government graffiti for a few hundred dollars.
Slogans like “Bibi is a dictator” or “Bibi is the enemy of mankind” were painted across cities, especially in Givatayim and Tel Aviv. Those recruited—often ordinary citizens—were gradually drawn into more serious missions: photographing IDF or Mossad facilities, tracking politicians, and even attempting to plant bombs.
According to Israeli police, Iran casts a wide net with recruitment messages. “They’re not targeting specific sectors,” said police spokesperson Dean Elsdunne. “They offer small jobs, then escalate to more severe crimes as the money increases.”
Experts warn that graffiti is just the beginning of a psychological operation. Ateret Shmuel, an Indigenous rights advocate, explains that the goal is to exploit social cracks and amplify unrest through repeated exposure—on walls and online. “It’s part of a propaganda playbook used by Iran and Russia,” she said. “The more people see these messages, the more they accept them as truth.”