Mehdi Farid, Fourth Man Hanged for Israeli Intelligence Espionage in 2026

According to the Judiciary’s Mizan News Agency, Mehdi Farid was hanged at an undisclosed location on 22 April 2026. As he was transferred to Ghezelhesar Prison last November, it is highly likely that he was executed at the prison. He was sentenced to death on the charge of efsad-fil-arz (corruption on earth) through “intelligence collaboration and espionage for the Mossad service.”

According to the official account, Mehdi was the head of the passive defence committee's management section in a sensitive state organisation. He initiated contact with Mossad operatives online and transmitted classified structural, security, and personnel data regarding his organisation. The Judiciary alleges that he subsequently received cash in euros during a covert meeting in Tehran, which he used to purchase secure communication devices and set up an encrypted network. The accusations culminated in a "technical phase" where Mehdi allegedly received specialised training and attempted to sabotage his organisation's internal network and servers using hardware and malware, including a Trojan-infected flash drive, provided by Israeli intelligence.

Mehdi Farid, around 48, was an Arak native arrested on 31 May 2023 while working for the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran. According to informed IHRNGO sources, Mehdi was initially sentenced to ten years imprisonment by Branch 26 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court. Upon retrial, he was sentenced to death on charges related to espionage for Israel by Branch 23 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court following his trial on 28 July 2025. 

Mehdi Farid is the fourth person to be hanged for espionage for Israel in 2026. Ali Ardestani was hanged on 7 January, Hamidreza Sabet Esmailpour’s execution was reported on 28 January and Kourosh Keyvani was hanged on 18 March. 

According to IHRNGO’s 2025 Annual Report on the Death Penalty in Iran, at least 13 people were executed for charges related to espionage for Israel. The surge began in the lead-up to the 12-day war in June 2025; 2 people were executed prior to the war, 3 during the war and the remainder were executed after the war. It is important to note that in some cases, the defendants were not originally arrested for espionage charges. They were coerced and tortured into making self-incriminating confessions that were later used as the basis of their sentences.