'India deports Iranian for spying on Israelis'

Indian newspaper reports PhD student in employ of Iranian gov't was monitoring Chabad House, synagogue in city of Pune.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
New Delhi terror arrest 370 (photo credit: REUTERS)
New Delhi terror arrest 370
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Police in the Indian city of Pune deported an Iranian last month after they discovered him spying on Israelis and Jewish institutions in the city, The Pune Mirror reported on Thursday.
According to the report, 40-year-old Hamid Kashkouli, an Iranian PhD student at the University of Pune, was spying on the Chabad House in the city’s Koregaon Park region and the Rasta Peth Synagogue, also in the city.
Kashkouli was on the payroll of the Iranian intelligence agency, according to the report.
“He came to India under the pretext of being a student but was keeping a close eye on the Jewish centers in Pune,” the Mirror quoted a police official as saying. “He had collected information about visitors’ movements at the Chabad House and the synagogue, which he forwarded to intelligence officials in Tehran.”
Kashkouli’s repeated trips to the Iranian Consulate in Mumbai roused the suspicions of the police. His driver was also detained, and told police that Kashkouli was employed by the Iranian government and was often visited in Pune by top Iranian government officials.
Police intercepted email messages from Kashkouli that proved he was an undercover Iranian agent monitoring the movements of Jews in Pune. He was also in contact with Iranian nationals in Delhi, according to the Mirror.