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Iran's Ministry of Intelligence
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Iran's Ministry of Intelligence

Iran's civilian intelligence agency; accused France of a wartime spy scheme in August 2026.

Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, its civilian spy agency since 1984, lost its minister Esmail Khatib to an Israeli airstrike on Tehran in March 2026, one of three senior officials killed within 48 hours.

Last refreshed: 17 August 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic

Key Question

With its minister killed and Ward 209 evacuated, who is actually running Iranian intelligence now?

Timeline for Iran's Ministry of Intelligence

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Background

Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, still widely known by its former acronym MOIS (Vezarat-e Ettela'at), is the country's civilian intelligence agency, founded in 1984. It runs domestic surveillance, counterintelligence and foreign intelligence in parallel with the separate Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Intelligence Organisation, and operates Ward 209 inside Evin Prison, its dedicated political-detainee wing.

Palo Alto Networks has linked the ministry to Handala Hack, the group behind a destructive wiper attack on Stryker Corporation, and Western agencies have long attributed Iranian state cyber operations and the assassination of exiled dissidents abroad to the ministry.

Its minister Esmail Khatib was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Tehran in March 2026, the third senior Iranian official killed within 48 hours; Ward 209 was evacuated to an unknown location days later.

Common Questions
What is Iran's MOIS and who runs it now?
MOIS (Ministry of Intelligence and Security) is Iran's primary civilian intelligence agency, founded in 1984. Its minister Esmail Khatib was killed in an Israeli airstrike in April 2026; a replacement has not been publicly confirmed.Source: Lowdown Iran conflict coverage
What is Ward 209 inside Evin Prison?
Ward 209 is the Intelligence Ministry's own dedicated detention wing inside Evin Prison, used to hold political prisoners under MOIS jurisdiction. It was evacuated during the 2026 conflict, with detainees moved to an unknown location.Source: Lowdown Iran conflict coverage
Is MOIS behind Iranian cyberattacks in 2026?
Palo Alto Networks linked Handala Hack, the group that conducted a destructive wiper attack on US medical technology company Stryker Corporation, to Iran's Ministry of Intelligence.Source: Palo Alto Networks
What is the difference between MOIS and the IRGC intelligence service?
MOIS is Iran's civilian intelligence agency covering domestic and foreign intelligence. The IRGC-IO (Intelligence Organisation of the IRGC) handles military and paramilitary intelligence. Both operate in parallel, sometimes in rivalry.Source: Lowdown analysis
What did Iran's Ministry of Intelligence accuse France of?
Running a wartime infiltration scheme through two diplomats present at a secret meeting, per its 15 August 2026 statement carried by Tasnim News.Source: Tasnim News
Has France responded to Iran's spy accusation?
No response, expulsion or denial had been reported as of 17 August 2026.Source: event
Source Material
Intelligence Ministry warns France against interference in IranMinistry of Intelligence (Iran) — Wikipedia