Turkish authorities on Monday arrested two individuals who were detained previously on allegations of working for the Israeli spy agency Mossad. Mehmet Budak Derya and Veysel Kerimoğlu, who had been under surveillance for some time and were captured in a joint operation by the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT), the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and the Istanbul Police Department, completed their procedures before a criminal court of peace at the Istanbul Courthouse.
The court ruled that the suspects be arrested on charges of "obtaining information that must remain confidential for the security or political interests of the state for purposes of political or military espionage. "It had been determined that company owner Derya, who had been under MIT surveillance for some time, and his employee Kerimoglu were transferring information to Mossad. Authorities found that Derya expanded his commercial activities toward Middle Eastern countries through Kerimoglu, developed social and commercial ties with Palestinians opposed to Israel's policies in the region, and transmitted the information they gathered to the Israeli service.
It was understood that Derya, who has maintained ties with Israeli intelligence since 2013, held third-country meetings in various European countries with numerous operatives using the code names "Luis, Jesus/Jose, Dr. Roberto/Ricardo, Dan/Dennis, Mark, Elly/Emmy, and Michael."
Investigators determined that Derya communicated with the Israeli service through an encrypted system and, following Mossad operatives' instructions, purchased SIM cards as well as internet modems and router devices from Türkiye and other countries, sending photos of labels containing passwords, serial numbers, production details and MAC addresses to his contacts. It was also established that during Derya's most recent meeting with Mossad officials in January, they discussed setting up a bank account for a front company, designing a website, opening social media accounts, and researching potential partner firms.
Derya was tasked with establishing a front company abroad to infiltrate international supply chains. According to the alleged plan, the company would coordinate procurement and shipment of products from countries designated by Mossad to final destinations identified by Israeli intelligence, working with three legitimate companies operating in Asia at different stages of the logistics process. Following the completion of the investigation, Derya and Kerimoğlu were detained in Istanbul on Feb. 6 as part of the "MONITUM Operation" conducted jointly by MIT, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office and the Istanbul Police Department's Counterterrorism Branch.
Turkish intelligence, in recent years, has uncovered several spy networks operated by independent groups, terrorist groups like Daesh, or foreign intelligence agencies in Türkiye.
According to Turkish security sources, Mossad often uses online communication applications to recruit operatives to spy on Palestinians and other foreign nationals living in Türkiye.