Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has reported the arrest of seven individuals linked to an alleged Israeli spy cell in the country, according to the pro-government Daily Sabah.
The report claims that Israel utilized Arab spies within Turkey to gather intelligence on targets in Lebanon and Syria, including a Hizbullah building in Beirut inhabited by senior military and political figures.
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The combined operation by the MIT and Istanbul police led to the discovery of 56 operatives who were supposedly collecting biographical information on foreign nationals, tracking vehicles via GPS, hacking into password-protected Wi-Fi networks, and identifying private locations.
The alleged Mossad agents, including one Palestinian, originated from multiple Middle Eastern countries and communicated via burner phones. They were trained in international locations, including Bangkok, the report states.
The Daily Sabah further reports that the Indian owner of a Tel Aviv-based firm, Cyberintelligence International Private Ltd, provided cybertech training. This assistance reportedly enabled the agents to hack into phones and send links that could access targets’ computers.
Turkey, which houses offices of Hamas—a group that the Turkish government does not designate as a terrorist organization—has previously reported busting other Mossad cells in the country.