Iranian Scientist Asks for Political Asylum in Israel
An Iranian nuclear scientist has requested political asylum in Israel, an Israeli lawmaker said.
Ayoub Kara, a Druze minister of the Likud Party, said Saturday that an Iranian academic with ties to Iran’s nuclear program passed the request for asylum via an Israeli woman of Iranian descent, according to reports.
The scientist is waiting for Israel’s decision from a “friendly” third country, according to Kara, who did not name the scientist or the country in which he is hiding.
The Washington Post reported Sunday that an increasing number of Iranian nuclear scientists are defecting or leaking information about Iran’s nuclear program to Western nations.
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news. All donations are still being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000 until April 24.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.

