Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was at the center of an Israeli plan to overthrow the regime in Tehran, with then-Mossad Director David Barnea traveling to Budapest in 2024 for a personal meeting with him, according to a New York Times investigation.
The investigation, based on accounts from US and Iranian officials familiar with the matter, said Ahmadinejad is currently being held under house arrest by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' intelligence branch after authorities in Tehran uncovered a significant portion of his contacts with Israel.
The recruitment operation reached its peak in late February this year, during the opening days of the war between the US and Israel and Iran. On Feb. 28, the day the war began, Israel struck Ahmadinejad's residential compound in Tehran, hitting a building housing his security guards as well as his vehicle.
Shortly after the strike, according to four senior Iranian officials, a black Peugeot arrived at the scene, picked up Ahmadinejad and quickly drove him away. US and Iranian officials familiar with the details said Mossad operatives were inside the vehicle and transported him to a secret safe house within Iran.
However, according to officials familiar with the matter, Ahmadinejad was unhappy with the rushed extraction and disappointed by the Israeli plan to return him to power. At some point, he left the safe house under unclear circumstances and has not been seen in public since late February, apart from a brief appearance last week at the funeral procession for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
His current status remains unclear, but four senior Iranian officials said he is being held under house arrest by the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence branch after authorities in Tehran uncovered a significant portion of his contacts with Israel.
In a 2024 interview with Turkey's CNB network, Ahmadinejad said authorities in Tehran had established a unit to thwart Mossad operations, only to later discover that the commander appointed to lead it was also a Mossad agent.
"Israel organized complex operations inside Iran. They could easily obtain information. People in Iran are still remaining silent about it. The man who was in charge of the unit in Iran tasked with countering Israel was an Israeli agent," he said at the time.
