New details have been cleared for publication on how Iran persuaded a Vizhnitz Hasid to carry out a series of espionage tasks.
Nearly a year after Elimelech Stern, a Hasidic man from the Vizhnitz community in Beit Shemesh, was arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, new information has surfaced about how he was allegedly recruited by Iranian intelligence.
Walla reports that Stern, facing debts of around 70,000 shekels, was lured through the Telegram messaging app. He had purchased a smartphone to explore cryptocurrency investments but was ultimately ensnared by an individual posing as “Anna Elena” from Canada.
“Anna” introduced herself as an activist campaigning against traffic accidents and offered Stern \$20 for every advertisement he helped post around Israel. The initial assignment involved printing and distributing 150 posters featuring a bloodied hand and the message: “History will write that children were murdered. Let’s stand on the right side of history.” Stern enlisted help from someone in Beitar Illit to hang the posters in Tel Aviv for 1,800 shekels.
The requests from “Anna” quickly escalated. She instructed Stern to switch phones and retrieve a new device buried in Haifa. She later asked him to commit acts of vandalism and arson—including setting a forest on fire for \$7,000, burning cars, and smashing shop windows. When Stern refused to carry out the arson, “Anna” questioned what he would do if offered \$75,000 to shoot someone.
Despite growing suspicions that he was dealing with a hostile intelligence agent, Stern admitted he maintained contact because of the financial benefits. During interrogation, he acknowledged he was aware he was aiding an enemy but claimed he felt “neutral and less committed” to the state.
