Iran-linked hackers leak photos of ex-IDF chief Halevi’s work and family life

Handala group claims to have collected ‘19,000 confidential images and videos from the most secret meetings’; footage reveals previously undisclosed meetings

A hacker group linked to Iran claimed on Thursday to have breached devices belonging to former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Herzi Halevi, publishing a trove of footage of the ex-general, who stepped down last year.

Handala on its website claimed that it had “for years… silently and invisibly been right inside the system” of Halevi, and during that time collected “more than 19,000 confidential images and videos from the most secret meetings.”

“All your top-secret facilities, crisis rooms, maps, and even the tiniest details of your command centers have long been like an open book to us,” the group claimed.

The hacker group published dozens of photos and videos showing Halevi touring military bases, meeting with pilots, holding briefings and meetings, and working out in his office.

Several photos of the former army chief’s family life were also published, along with the ID cards of Halevi and his wife.

The footage also revealed several meetings and visits that had previously not been disclosed to the public.

One video and photo showed Halevi meeting his Jordanian counterpart, Maj. Gen. Yousef Huneiti, in Jordan, and presenting him with a dagger belonging to a Jordanian soldier who was killed in the Six Day War in 1967.

Other photos showed Halevi in Qatar during a meeting with former US Central Command chief Michael Kurilla.

Both meetings had been kept under wraps.

There was no immediate comment from Halevi or the IDF on the apparent hack.

It is not the first time that Handala has published the contents from the devices of Israeli officials.

Handala has claimed to have hacked the phones of former prime minister Naftali Bennett, former justice minister Ayelet Shaked, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s chief of staff, Tzachi Braverman.