Israeli Woman Accused of Spying for Iran Attempts Suicide
by i24 News
i24 News – An Israeli woman who was arrested on charges of spying for Iran earlier this year attempted suicide while under house arrest on Thursday.
Paramedics arrived at her home to find that she attempted to overdose on medication. She is in critical condition.
London-based Iran International, a TV network affiliated with the Islamic republic’s opposition, first reported about the incident, but did not immediately any further details.
She is one of four women – all of Iranian heritage – who were accused of providing photos of sites in Israel to an Iranian intelligence operative who contacted them through social media, posing as a Jew.
All four women deny any intention to harm Israel’s security and said they didn’t know the person they were talking to was an Iranian agent – who asked them for photos of the prime minister’s residence in Jerusalem, of the US embassy, and of other locations.
Three of them were also charged with providing information that could harm Israel’s security. If convicted of contact with a foreign agent, the Israeli women could face up to 15 years in prison.
The husband of one of the women was charged with aiding his wife after he drove her to one of the sites she photographed for the Iranian agent.
“I’m shocked, but not surprised,” said Ben-Zion Citrin, the lawyer of the woman who attempted suicide, adding that the authorities “took a normal family and ruined their lives.”
“[My client] cannot bear this impossible situation she finds herself in.”