Gonen Segev: former Israeli cabinet minister ‘spied for Iran’
Energy and infrastructure minister had previously been jailed for importing drugs

A former Israeli cabinet minister has been arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, according to Israel’s Shin Bet security agency.
Gonen Segev, 62, who served as energy and infrastructure minister in the 1990s, was “recruited and acted as an agent on behalf of Iranian intelligence”, Shin Bet says.
The agency alleges that Segev gave information “connected to the energy market and security sites in Israel including buildings and officials in political and security organisations”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Segev has denied he was working out of “ideological or financial motivation”, reports The Times of Israel, and claimed he was “instead trying to act as a double-agent and spy on the Iranians”.
He was reportedly arrested while attempting to travel to Equatorial Guinea in May, and has been in custody since.
Segev, who is also a doctor, was charged in 2004 with “trying to smuggle 30,000 ecstasy tablets into Israel from the Netherlands, using a diplomatic passport with a falsified expiry date”, Al Jazeera reports.
He was released from prison in 2007, before moving to west Africa.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
August 2 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include a tariff self-own, rough times at the Trump golf course, and more
-
5 inexcusably hilarious cartoons about Ghislaine Maxwell angling for a pardon
Cartoons Artists take on the circle of life, Ghislaine's Island, and more
-
Ozzy Osbourne obituary: heavy metal wildman and lovable reality TV dad
In the Spotlight For Osbourne, metal was 'not the music of hell but rather the music of Earth, not a fantasy but a survival guide'
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctions
The Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
Israeli NGOs have started referring to Gaza as a 'genocide' — will it matter?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION For the first time since fighting began in 2023, two Israeli rights groups have described their country's actions in the Gaza Strip as 'genocide' while famine threatens the blockaded Palestinian territory
-
28 nations condemn Israel's 'inhumane killing' in Gaza
Speed Read Countries including Australia, France, Japan and the U.K. have released a joint statement condemning Israel's ongoing attacks
-
Israeli gunfire kills dozens at Gaza aid site
Speed Read The U.N. estimates that at least 875 Palestinians have died while trying to access food in recent months
-
The return of the Houthis: violence in the Red Sea
In the Spotlight The Houthis are back with their strongest attack yet
-
Rubio says US brokered end to Syria conflict
Speed Read Syria's defense ministry was targeted in Israeli attacks on the capital
-
Iran still has enriched uranium, Israeli official says
Speed Read It remains unclear how long it would take Iran to rebuild its nuclear program following US and Israeli attacks
-
Israel's plan for confining all Palestinians in 'humanitarian city'
The Explainer Defence minister wants to establish zone in Gaza for displaced people – which they would not be allowed to leave – prompting accusations of war crimes