{
  "id": 7835458,
  "title": "Iranian plot to assassinate Israeli nuclear scientist results in four convictions",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/iranian-plot-to-assassinate-israeli-nuclear-scientist-results-in-four",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-16T17:38:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Jerusalem Post",
    "slug": "jerusalem-post",
    "url": "https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-908820"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Four residents of Jerusalem's Beit Safafa neighborhood received convictions on Wednesday for their alleged involvement in an Iranian-directed assassination plot targeting an Israeli nuclear scientist and his family, according to the State Attorney's Office. The four defendants pleaded guilty under a plea agreement, but none were charged with the planning of the murder itself.\n\nMamdouh Khader and Omri Abu Hamida were found guilty of failing to prevent a terrorist act, while Mahmoud Khader and Muhammad Taha were convicted of assisting another defendant in maintaining contact with a foreign agent. According to the amended indictment, an individual acting on Iran's behalf contacted defendant Rami Alyan in September 2024, offering payment for assignments. Alyan was subsequently instructed to form a cell to carry out the assassination plot.\n\nDuring a drive to the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, another defendant informed the group that the trip was part of an assignment from the Iranian contact. Security personnel barred the group from entering, and two other defendants recorded the incident. Upon returning to Jerusalem, Abu Hamida inquired about the reason for the Iranian interest, being told that someone at the location was a target. Khader and Abu Hamida did nothing to thwart the plan, as alleged by the indictment.\n\nMahmoud Khader admitted to helping spray and photograph writing in Jerusalem, and also drove another defendant to collect two stun grenades. He also facilitated the acquisition of a false police license plate intended for footage that would simulate an attack on a patrol car. Taha claimed responsibility for arranging for a stun grenade to be thrown at an empty home in Katanna, Jerusalem, and for filming the act to make it appear as though a Jewish residence had been targeted. The indictment notes that Taha held the phone used in this contact to complicate the identification of the perpetrator.",
  "summary": "Prosecutors allege that an individual contacted by Iran was told to form a cell to kill a scientist and his family.",
  "key_points": [
    "Four Jerusalem residents convicted for alleged Iranian assassination plot.",
    "Defendants pleaded guilty but not charged with murder planning.",
    "Plot involved contact with Iranian agent in September 2024."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}