Israel Defense Minister’s Cleaner Charged with Attempt to Spy for Iran

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. (AP)
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. (AP)
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Israel Defense Minister’s Cleaner Charged with Attempt to Spy for Iran

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. (AP)
Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz. (AP)

A man employed as a cleaner in the home of Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz was charged Thursday with attempting to spy for the Black Shadow hacking group which is purportedly linked to Iran.

According to the indictment published by Israel's justice ministry, Omri Goren Gorochovsky, a 37-year-old resident of the central city of Lod, was arrested on November 4.

An arrest warrant for Gorochovsky said he had an extensive criminal history, including five convictions and prison time served for various offenses including bank robbery, raising questions about how he was hired to work in the home of one of Israel's top security officials.

In a separate statement, the Shin Bet domestic security agency said Gorochovsky had never gained access to "classified materials" and therefore did not successfully share state secrets.

Gorochovsky and his partner worked as cleaners in Gantz's home in Rosh Haayin outside Tel Aviv, the indictment says.

Late last month, the Black Shadow hackers claimed a cyberattack targeting an Israeli internet service provider which attracted widespread media attention.

In Gorochovsky's charge sheet, Black Shadow is described as "affiliated to Iran".

Following the high-profile cyberattack, Gorochovsky allegedly contacted Black Shadow via Telegram on or around October 31 with an offer to pass on information from Gantz's home.

Using a false name, Israel says the suspect "identified himself as someone working in the home of the Israeli minister of defense, and noted his ability to assist the group in various ways".

According to the charge sheet, Gorochovsky told a Black Shadow representative that for a "monetary sum" he would convey information via malware that he proposed implanting with a USB device.

Family photos, IP address

To prove his credibility, the indictment says, Gorochovsky sent photographs of various items in the minister's house.

Those included Gantz's work desk, a package with a sticker that contained an IP address, souvenirs from Gantz's previous role as Israel's armed forces chief of staff, family photos and a property tax payment receipt.

The Shin Bet said the espionage attempt was quickly thwarted, with Gorochovsky arrested just days after he reached out to Black Shadow.

Attorney Gal Wolf, representing Gorochovsky, told Israeli public radio the indictment "grew in volume and in a direction that does not at all match the evidence."

"The client I represent denies completely that he had any intention of harming state security. And the fact is at the end of the day he did not with his actions harm state security and he didn't have the ability to harm," Wolf said.

Instead, Gorochovsky's actions should be seen as criminal deeds and to charge him with espionage was "a step too far," Wolf said.

The hacking group, which has not acknowledged any link to Israel's arch foe Iran, has been blamed for multiple attacks on Israel's internet infrastructure.

The group has penetrated an Israeli insurance firm, stealing a trove of data and leaking it when its demand for a ransom was not met.

Black Shadow hacks are seen as part of a years-long covert war between Israel and Iran including physical attacks on ships and offensive cyber moves online.

The Shin Bet said it had launched an investigation over Gorochovsky's case "in order to reduce the chances of recurrence of these kinds of incidents in the future".



G7 Urges Iran to Resume Diplomacy over Nuclear Program

FILE PHOTO: Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly speaks during the G7 foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada March 13, 2025. SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly speaks during the G7 foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada March 13, 2025. SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
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G7 Urges Iran to Resume Diplomacy over Nuclear Program

FILE PHOTO: Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly speaks during the G7 foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada March 13, 2025. SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly speaks during the G7 foreign ministers meeting in La Malbaie, Quebec, Canada March 13, 2025. SAUL LOEB/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Foreign ministers of leading Western democracies warned on Thursday of the threat from Iran's growing use of arbitrary detention and foreign assassination attempts as a tool of coercion, a final draft statement seen by Reuters showed.

The G7 nations, comprising Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, said in a statement that Tehran was a principle source of instability in the Middle East and urged it to resume diplomacy over its nuclear program.

Representatives of China, Russia and Iran called Friday for an end to US sanctions on Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program and a restart to multinational talks on the issue.

The three countries' meeting was the latest attempt to broach the matter and come after US President Donald Trump wrote to Iran’s supreme leader in an attempt to jumpstart talks.

The letter, which hasn’t been published, was offered as Trump levied new sanctions on Iran as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign that holds out the possibility of military action while emphasizing he still believed a new deal could be reached.