TEHRAN – In another campaign of cyberattacks against Israeli military facilities, pro-Palestinian hacking group Handara has released the detailed identity of what it calls the “principal designer” of the Iron Dome missile defense system.
The group exposed more than a dozen people on Saturday, branding the defense shield a “fragile illusion” and a “global joke.”
The operation comes after Handara infiltrated the vehicle of Israeli nuclear scientist Yitzhak Gertz a few days ago and recently intercepted 10 operatives from Unit 8200, the signals intelligence division that has long been accused of systematic surveillance and extortion against Palestinians.
These successive attacks highlight a relentless campaign aimed at dismantling Israel’s aura of “technological superiority.”
Handara ridiculed Israel’s military establishment, asserting that Iron Dome’s architects “can’t even secure their own identity, let alone the sky.” The group also called on Tel Aviv to “invest less in propaganda and more in real protection.”
The group published the personal and professional backgrounds, contact information and specific roles of the engineers and technicians involved. Among those exposed are:
– Ronen Miller and Schlomo Cohen — Senior software engineers who developed DSP algorithms and led the Iron Dome project at IAI and mPrest.
– Chen Sarig — Systems engineer specializing in Elta and Elisra radar and command and control systems.
– Ram Aron — Veteran technology leader with multiple patents related to Iron Dome.
– Denis Zarfin — Data Scientist, previously at Elbit Systems, working on the Iron Dome project.
– Gal Wainberg — Former Iron Dome radar technician and Israeli Air Force team leader.
– Sapir Aharoni — Served as an operations sergeant for the Iron Dome defense system.
– Others include Andrey Ostrovsky (R&D Engineering Manager), Moshe Shem-Tov (QA Manager with 25 years in Defense Systems), Simion Novikov (Israel Air Force Algorithm Developer), and Stefan Gegel (Full Stack Developer).
Handara also offered a $10,000 reward for verified information leading to the location and arrest of each operative.
Israeli technology is widely seen as enabling policies and practices that prolong military occupation, facilitate military brutality, and reinforce systematic repression within occupied territories.
Handara’s revelations exposed the weaknesses of Israel’s defense system and turned a symbol of strength into a liability. The group warns that by stripping Iron Dome’s designers of their anonymity, the system “failed to protect its creators” and left Israel’s defense elite with nowhere to hide.