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NYT alleges Mossad recruitment
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad rejected a New York Times report alleging Israel’s Mossad sought to recruit him as an intelligence asset and possible post-regime leader, calling the claims “Hollywood-style claims.”
“dismiss[ing] a major New York Times investigation published July 13 as “Hollywood-style claims””
The New York Times report, as described by eciks.org, said Mossad maintained secret contacts with Ahmadinejad for several years beginning in 2022 and included financial and logistical support for overseas travel and secret meetings in Budapest.
eciks.org also said the alleged operation included a meeting in 2024 when Mossad Chief David Barnea reportedly met Ahmadinejad personally in Budapest, and that Mossad notified the CIA it had established a channel of communication with him.
The report further alleged that during the opening stages of the war involving Iran, Israel, and the United States, an Israeli airstrike hit Ahmadinejad’s residential compound in Tehran, destroying facilities used by his security detail and damaging his armored vehicle.
After the strike, eciks.org said Mossad operatives allegedly transported him to a safe house inside Iran, but that the reports indicated Ahmadinejad later became distrustful and rejected the plan to return him to power.
Denials, house-arrest dispute
Ahmadinejad’s office issued a denial through Iran International, rejecting the allegations as “completely false” and accusing the New York Times of publishing “fake news and fabricated lies.”
Kurdistan24 said the response, issued through Ahmadinejad’s office on Tuesday, described the claims as “Baseless” and categorically denied reports that the former president had been confined to his home.
Kurdistan24 also said the New York Times report alleged that Israeli operatives attempted to remove Ahmadinejad from Tehran during the early stages of the recent conflict, and that the effort ultimately did not succeed.
In a separate account carried by i24NEWS, Ahmadinejad’s office dismissed the allegations as “Hollywood-style claims” that were “not worthy of denial,” and it denied reports that he had been placed under house arrest, saying he remained active and continued his normal daily work.
i24NEWS further reported that former senior Mossad official and intelligence commentator Sagi Assulin criticized the publication of operational details, warning that “If these reports are true, publishing details like these could actually harm intelligence assets, operational capabilities, and state security.”
What the reporting says next
The reporting described a sequence in which Israeli intelligence allegedly viewed Ahmadinejad as a possible figurehead for a post-regime political order despite his history of “virulent anti-Israel rhetoric” and Holocaust denial, and it said the alleged operation reached a critical juncture in February 2026.
“The reported operation allegedly reached a critical juncture in February 2026”
eciks.org said the Mossad notified the CIA it had established a channel of communication with Ahmadinejad, while i24NEWS said the relationship began developing in 2022 after Israeli intelligence concluded that Ahmadinejad’s views and relationship with Iran’s ruling establishment were changing.
i24NEWS reported that the alleged operation included financial and logistical support for overseas travel and accommodation and secret meetings outside Iran, including in Budapest, where then-Mossad Director David Barnea reportedly met Ahmadinejad personally in the Hungarian capital in 2024.
In the same i24NEWS account, it said the alleged operation entered a decisive phase in February 2026, with an Israeli strike hitting Ahmadinejad’s residential compound in Tehran and Mossad operatives then allegedly transporting him to a safe house inside Iran.
The dispute over his status continued as eciks.org said the reports indicated Ahmadinejad later became distrustful and rejected the plan to return him to power, while Kurdistan24 said his office denied he was placed under house arrest and characterized that claim as without basis.
