WANA (Nov 23) – An Israeli news outlet reported on Sunday that the cyber group Handala has escalated the ongoing cyber conflict by issuing what is described as the first direct death threat against an employee of Israel’s defense industry.

 

According to i24NEWS, the Handala hacker group sent a direct threat to kill one of the Israeli military-industry personnel whose name and address had appeared on a recently leaked list published by the group. The incident has reportedly alarmed Israeli security institutions, which—as usual—have pointed fingers at Iran.

 

The targeted employee is said to have received a personal email reading:

 

“I swear I will use all my power to avenge the murder of our hero (Qassem) Soleimani. I may come now, tomorrow night, or another day. You will not be able to escape.”

 

The list released by Handala included names and home addresses of several Israeli employees and academics.

 

According to the report, the group also posted private information of several Israeli defense-industry workers on a dedicated website and offered rewards up to $100,000 to anyone who inflicts “physical harm” on individuals listed. Israeli sources have described the act as a “dangerous escalation in the Iran-linked cyberwar.”

 

Cybercrime expert Lee Ayash said the operation goes far beyond traditional cyberattacks, combining data breaches with explicit incitement to physical violence—posing a direct threat to the individuals targeted.

 

In addition to defense-industry personnel, the leaked list includes Israeli academics whom Handala accuses of contributing to the “genocide of Palestinians.” Among them are Prof. Daniel Chamovitz, president of Ben-Gurion University, and Prof. Shikma Bressler, a well-known figure from the Weizmann Institute of Science.

 

Israeli security agencies have launched extensive investigations to identify the source of the leaks and to provide protective measures for those targeted, amid growing concerns that online threats could translate into real-world attacks.

 

Cash Rewards for Information and “Public Manhunt”

Separately, the Hebrew-language outlet Walla reported Saturday night that Handala had released additional personal information belonging to Israeli defense-industry workers and urged users to help locate them. The group promised cash rewards for any tips leading to the identification or capture of those individuals.

 

Walla noted that Handala recently posted a series of unusual messages on X, revealing the personal data of Israeli “defense industry” employees and offering $10,000 for information that leads to locating them.

 

The report adds that Handala is not a new name for those familiar with Israel’s cyber sphere; the group has previously demonstrated its capabilities by hacking Israeli institutions or high-profile personal accounts.

 

However, Walla stressed that the recent posts mark a dramatic shift: Not only personal data was leaked, But real financial incentives were added, and a link was provided for submitting “tips/information,” creating an atmosphere of a public online manhunt and signaling deep penetration into Israeli civilian and security domains.

 

Handala did not limit itself to general posts; it published individual posts for each person it identified as a defense-industry employee. Each post included: photo, full name, job title, phone number, email address, alleged home location.

 

Users were then invited to contribute any additional information.

 

The group also claimed that all submitted data would remain “strictly confidential” and provided a link to a special platform to receive these reports.