ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iran on Wednesday executed an alleged Israeli spy, claiming he was providing sensitive information to Tel Aviv and was a “key figure” in Mossad, the judiciary announced.

“Ali Ardestani, son of Ahmad Bamdad, was hanged this morning for espionage for the Mossad terrorist service. He was a key figure in Mossad in Iran who had passed sensitive information to the Zionists,” the judiciary’s Mizan Online said.

It accused Ardestani of collaborating with Israel and “carrying out missions for the Mossad in exchange for specific sums of money and empty promises,” including a $1 million reward and a UK visa.

Among his activities was providing Mossad with photographs of specific locations and information on its targets, the judiciary further alleged, saying he “received sums of money in the form of digital currency at the end of each mission.”

Throughout the 12-day war with Israel in June, Iran arrested over 700 alleged Israeli agents in the country, according to local outlets. At least 11 have been executed on charges of espionage since the war ended,  with little information made public about how their trials were conducted and the cases presented against them.

Iran executed its highest number of prisoners in over 15 years in 2025, according to Amnesty International.

In that year, Iran executed at least 1,858 prisoners, according to the Oslo-based Hengaw human rights monitor. Of those executed, 264 were Kurdish, and 239 were members of the Lor minority. Most of the executions are carried out in prisons, though public killings are still held intermittently.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in December said that Washington is "under no illusion" regarding the killing of alleged Israeli spies by the Iranian authorities, asserting, "I know of no nation on Earth where there is such a difference between a regime that governs the country and the people who live there every single day."