14-Year Sentence for Daniel Khalife for Transferring Information to the Islamic Republic

Daniel Abad Khalife, a former British Army soldier, has been sentenced to over 14 years in prison for gathering sensitive information for the Islamic Republic and compiling the names of special forces personnel. The 23-year-old soldier, whose mother is Iranian, was convicted in Azar 1403 (December 2024) for collecting military and classified information for the Iranian government for two and a half years, from spring 1398 (2019) to winter 1400 (2021), and for obtaining information potentially useful for committing terrorism. Khalife, who was discharged from the British Army after being found guilty in this case, has also admitted to escaping from 'Wandsworth Prison' in London in Shahrivar 1402 (September 2023). He escaped on September 15 while awaiting trial but was apprehended by London police three days later. According to prosecutors, the nationwide search operation by British police to return Khalife to prison cost over $300,000. This former soldier claimed patriotism and expressed hatred for the Iranian government, stating that he had informed British intelligence agencies about his contacts and intended to serve as a 'double agent.' The judge described Khalife's 'dangerous and fanciful' plan as stemming from his 'selfish desire' to 'show off.' Prosecutors say Khalife had numerous contacts with various agents linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps after contacting Iranian officials and received money twice. This former soldier, who joined the British Army before turning 17, claimed that the information he provided to Iranian agents was useless.