IRGC Puts Ahmadinejad Under House Arrest Over 2024 Israel Contacts

3 articles · Updated · The Jerusalem Post · Jul 13

Four senior Iranian officials told the New York Times that the IRGC’s intelligence arm has placed former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad under house arrest after uncovering extensive contacts with Israel.
A 2024 Budapest climate conference invitation allegedly served as cover for secret talks with Israeli intelligence, and former U.S. officials said Shin Bet chief David Barnea traveled there to meet Ahmadinejad.
The report says Israel later made secret payments to Ahmadinejad spokesman Ali Akbar Javanfekr and explored using Ahmadinejad as an asset — even a possible post-regime leader.
February marked another turn when Ahmadinejad’s compound was hit in an Israeli strike, after which he was reportedly taken to a Mossad safe house before resurfacing at Ali Khamenei’s funeral.
Associates said Ahmadinejad was driven less by money than by a bid to regain power after three presidential disqualifications, and had spoken of normalizing ties with Israel through the Abraham Accords.

Sources

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The Jerusalem Post16h ago

Former Iranian President Ahmadinejad Under IRGC House Arrest Over Israel Contacts

The New York Times7h ago

Inside Israel's Secret Operation to Cultivate Ahmadinejad - The New York Times

The Times of Israel16h ago

Head of Iranian unit countering Mossad was Israeli agent, says ex-president Ahmadinejad | The Times of Israel

4 Sources

What explains Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's secret turn from Iran's hardliner to an alleged Israeli asset?

While the US negotiated peace, was Israel secretly plotting to install its own leader in Iran?

With Israel's secret plot exposed, has the IRGC permanently secured its grip on post-Khamenei Iran?

Ahmadinejad, Espionage, and the Failed 2026 Regime Change: How Israeli and US Covert Operations Deepened Iran’s Leadership Crisis

Overview

After Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in February 2026, former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a surprising public return by attending Khamenei’s massive funeral in July. His reappearance highlighted a failed US and Israeli plan to install him as Iran’s new leader after Khamenei’s death. This plan unraveled following an Israeli airstrike meant to free Ahmadinejad from house arrest, which instead left him injured. The episode exposed deep foreign intelligence penetration in Iran and intensified internal suspicion, ultimately leading to a leadership crisis and the rise of the Revolutionary Guard’s power.

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