In the pastoral calm of Overijssel province in northeastern Netherlands, bordering Germany, a boy grew up dreaming of battles in the Holy Land. Few could have imagined that the boy, Jonathan Mor (a pseudonym), would become one of the Israeli Mossad’s most important and enigmatic assets — a Dutch spy operating in the shadows against Iran’s regime.
According to an exposé by the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, Mor spent 15 years at the center of the most dangerous operations targeting Iran’s nuclear project. His book, “Spy of the Mossad,” is also being published this week.
Residents of quiet Overijssel believed Mor was simply a savvy businessman, a successful hotel manager and a devoted family man. All of that was true — but he also had a hidden, far more dramatic side. The Dutch report described him as one of the Israeli intelligence agency’s most important strategic assets in Europe — effectively “a fighter without cover,” meaning an operative working without official diplomatic protection.
His obsession with Israel began in his youth. While friends played soccer, he compiled detailed scrapbooks in his attic documenting Israel Defense Forces operations, hiding them behind secret panels. He says those albums are likely still there today.
That passion led him to immigrate to Israel, live on a kibbutz (a communal agricultural community) and convert to Judaism. He planned to enlist in elite commando units but was identified by Military Intelligence — known by its Hebrew acronym Aman — which quickly recognized his potential as a multilingual Dutch national able to move freely without arousing suspicion.
'Most of the assistance I provided came from my hotel'
He was thus drawn into the world of espionage. After starting a family, he left military service for the hotel industry, eventually returning to the Netherlands. As a hotel manager, he was asked by the Mossad to assist operations in the country following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, and soon began working for the agency full time.
“The work for what we called ‘the Office’ didn’t begin with Hollywood-style missions,” he said. “Most of the assistance I provided came simply from my hotel. Gradually, I was entrusted with more complex assignments.”
One of the most striking revelations concerns his involvement in “Operation Matchmaker.” Until 2022, Mor worked with the Mossad to develop a groundbreaking artificial intelligence system designed to map and identify social and political connections and automatically screen potential recruits who could serve as Israel’s “eyes and ears” inside the Islamic Republic. The system could initiate contact with prospective informants through messages and phone calls.
Mor expressed pride in the project, saying it allowed the Mossad to harness a “flood of information” and turn it into high-quality operational intelligence.
Operating under dozens of aliases as a wealthy businessman and international investor, he hosted Iranian scientists and military officials at luxury restaurants and gentlemen’s clubs worldwide. He recruited dozens of agents at the highest levels of Iran’s nuclear program and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, using what he described as “personal charm, bluff and money.”
In one case, he contacted a relative of senior nuclear scientist Saeed Barji in Hong Kong under the guise of establishing a humanitarian initiative. The aim was to reach Barji himself and present an ultimatum — cooperate or be killed. Barji was ultimately killed in an Israeli missile strike during Operation Rising Lion in June 2025.
The Dutch report also sheds light on the operational rigor of the Mossad’s Caesarea unit — the agency’s clandestine operations division. Mor helped gather critical intelligence for the targeted killings of senior arms smugglers. He described moments of intense psychological strain, such as drinking tea with a target minutes before the man’s car was struck by a drone.
“What helped me,” he said, “was thinking about the innocent civilians who would be saved by stopping those weapons shipments.”
Mor was also involved in preparations for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force — the IRGC’s external operations arm responsible for advancing Iran’s regional influence across the Middle East. Although an earlier plan was thwarted during President Barack Obama’s administration in 2015, the intelligence gathered was ultimately used in the strike that killed Soleimani at Baghdad’s airport in January 2020 during President Donald Trump’s first term.
Mor expresses no regret about his double life. He views his work as a mission to defend Israel and the broader West from terrorism and extremist Islam. His story underscores Israel’s reliance on foreign-national assets, whose citizenship allows them to operate in places where Israelis would be immediately identified.
In the past year, Israel has reaped the benefits of its intelligence efforts in Iran, achieving what officials describe as unprecedented successes. For Mor — the boy from the German border — there is deep pride in his role in those achievements and in contributing to Israel’s security.