Lebanese media: Israeli arrested in Beirut on suspicion of espionage

Lebanese media outlets report that a far-left activist from Israel, holding American, British, and Israeli citizenships, was arrested in Beirut by Lebanese security forces.

Joshua Tartakovsky originally entered Lebanon two weeks ago, using a British passport and claiming to be a journalist covering war events.

At one point, he aroused suspicion. A search of his belongings was conducted, during which his Israeli passport was found. After searching his name and identity on the internet, the Lebanese found two articles on the far-left communist website "Zo Haderech" (This is the Way).

Tartakovsky grew up in an American-Haredi family, completed a degree in communications at Brown University in the United States, and finished a degree in international relations at the London School of Economics.

He then worked as a freelance journalist for magazines and news outlets associated with the far-left in Israel and worldwide, but he presented conflicting and unclear opinions on social media. In 2022, he proudly tweeted "Kahane Lives" on Twitter (now X), and on the same day tweeted in support of Kanye West and his antisemitic statements.

In his journalistic work, he usually presented extreme anti-Israeli positions.

According to his publication in an American magazine, he took part in producing an interview film with Palestinian students, defined Israel as apartheid, and wrote extensively against it.