The pro-government Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah has reported that an investigation into 44 detainees suspected of spying on Palestinians in the country led to the arrest of seven Mossad agents following a joint operation by Istanbul police and the National Intelligence Organization (MIT).
The Turkish security authorities are still investigating Istanbul-based “consulting companies” which provide private investigation services according to Daily Sabah.
Daily Sabah wrote that Turkish investigators affirmed that the Mossad agency paid people to spy on Palestinians and their non-governmental organizations in Turkey.
The investigations revealed that the detained spies helped the Israeli intelligence agency launch online defamation and threat campaigns against Palestinians.
A search is also underway to capture 13 other suspects involved in related spy activities according to the Turkish newspaper.
The detainees include a person referred to as I.Y. who founded a private investigators’ association in 2007 and works as a university lecturer the newspaper said.
In October 2021 MIT arrested 15 men accused of spying for Mossad including Palestinians and Syrians.
