The First Trial Session of Former Israeli Minister on Charges of 'Espionage for Iran' Held

The first trial session of Gonen Segev, former Israeli Energy Minister, on charges of 'espionage for Iran' was held privately on Thursday, July 5, in a court in Jerusalem. According to the Associated Press, at the initial moments of Gonen Segev's arrival at the court, Giula Cohen, the district attorney of Jerusalem, emphasized the importance of the case by referring to 'the espionage of a former minister for a country that is considered Israel's greatest enemy.' Shin Bet, Israel's internal security agency, stated that Gonen Segev is accused of 'collaborating with the enemy during wartime and spying against the state of Israel' following contacts with Iranian intelligence agents. The French news agency reported that one of the former minister's lawyers stated that only the charges were presented to him during the court session on Thursday, and the next session has been postponed to next month, 'without specifying an exact date.' During the weeks that this former Israeli minister has been in custody, no statements from him regarding the charges have been published, and on the other hand, his defense attorney, Moshe Mazor, also mentioned in court on Thursday that he has not yet received all the evidence in the case. Mr. Segev, who served as Israel's Energy Minister for a year and a half about 23 years ago, was extradited from Equatorial Guinea in May and was arrested upon his arrival in Israel. A brief statement released by his lawyers last month, coinciding with the public disclosure of Mr. Segev's 'espionage,' did not confirm or deny the accusation, only stating that the image reflected in the indictment is 'a different image' from Shin Bet's statements. However, some Israeli media have reported that this former minister has denied all accusations during his interrogations, claiming that he intended to acquire information from Iran to pass it on to Israel. Israel considers Iran its greatest enemy, citing actions such as statements from Islamic Republic officials about 'the destruction of Israel,' support for groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, and its missile activities. According to Israeli media, Gonen Segev had been residing in Nigeria in recent years. The Israeli government revoked his medical license in 2005 due to his involvement in a case of smuggling 30,000 psychotropic pills from Africa to Israel and also for forging the extension of his diplomatic passport, but he continued to practice medicine in Nigeria. Several Israeli media outlets have claimed that Iranian officials initially contacted Dr. Segev under the pretext of 'treating the child of one of the Iranian embassy officials,' who was apparently 'a bait,' and later he allegedly traveled to Iran twice with a German passport. Israeli officials have neither confirmed nor denied these reports. The news of this former Israeli minister's arrest was reflected in Iranian media, but Iranian officials have not reacted to it.