The judiciary’s Mizan Online website said Erfan Kiani was hanged after the country’s Supreme Court upheld his death sentence, describing him as one of the “main operatives” involved in an operation allegedly directed by Mossad during unrest in the central province of Isfahan in January.

Authorities accused Kiani of participating in sabotage and violent attacks during the protests, which officials say were orchestrated by foreign-backed groups seeking to destabilize the country.

According to the judiciary, he was charged with “destruction of public and private property, arson, possession and use of Molotov cocktails, carrying a bladed weapon, blocking vehicle routes, attacking officers, and creating fear and panic among citizens.”Iranian officials said the activities formed part of a “mission assigned by Mossad,” Israel’s foreign intelligence agency, although no independent evidence was publicly presented.

The execution follows the hanging on Thursday of another man convicted of membership in a banned opposition organization, continuing a broader wave of capital punishment linked to unrest and national security charges.Iran has sharply increased executions since the outbreak of war with Israel and the United States on Feb. 28, when U.S.-Israeli strikes triggered a wider regional conflict and heightened internal security measures across the country.

Authorities have linked January’s protests to what they describe as coordinated interference by Israel, the United States, and exiled opposition groups, including the banned People’s Mujahedin Organization of Iran.Since March 19, Iranian authorities have executed at least nine men on charges connected to those protests, according to official statements.

Human rights organizations have repeatedly criticized Iran’s use of the death penalty, particularly in cases involving political dissent, espionage accusations, and national security prosecutions.According to groups including Amnesty International, Iran is the world’s second most prolific user of capital punishment after China.

Tehran maintains that such executions are necessary to preserve national security and deter what it calls foreign-sponsored subversion during wartime conditions.

The latest case is likely to draw renewed international scrutiny over Iran’s judicial process and its handling of security-related prosecutions amid escalating regional tensions.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) said the alert was issued in coordination with Germany’s foreign intelligence agency, the BND, and the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The group, also known as “Fancy Bear,” has been attributed by Western governments to Russia’s military intelligence service, the GRU.According to the BfV, APT28 exploited weaknesses in TP-Link routers, affecting several thousand devices worldwide, including about 30 in Germany.

In some cases, authorities confirmed breaches, leading operators to replace compromised hardware.The agency said the campaign was aimed at facilitating surveillance of sensitive targets, including state institutions and key infrastructure networks.

APT28 has previously been linked to cyberattacks against Germany’s parliament, the Social Democratic Party and air traffic control systems, underscoring its long-standing role in espionage operations targeting European institutions.

German authorities urged heightened vigilance and coordination among operators to mitigate risks posed by the ongoing campaign.

The March 20 report, issued by the FBI and other federal agencies, said Iran’s government posed an elevated risk to U.S. military and government personnel, Jewish and Israeli institutions, and Iranian dissidents within the United States.

It added that while no broad threat to the general public had been identified, the potential for targeted attacks remained significant.President Donald Trump had publicly minimized the risk of Iranian retaliation on U.S. soil in recent months.

When asked on March 11 whether he was concerned about a possible attack, Trump said he was not. His rhetoric shifted this week, however, as tensions escalated, including a warning that “a whole civilization will die tonight” before he agreed to delay military action and accept a two-week ceasefire.

The intelligence document, titled “Public Safety Awareness Report,” was released weeks after reports that the White House had blocked a similar product from being made public. At the time, officials said the move was to ensure information was properly vetted.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the administration remained focused on protecting national security and cautioned against drawing conclusions from individual law enforcement documents without broader context.

The FBI and National Counterterrorism Center did not immediately respond to requests for comment, while a spokesperson for Iran’s mission to the United Nations declined to comment.

The report, obtained through public records requests by the nonprofit Property of the People, warned of “elevated physical threats” following the outbreak of conflict. It said Iranian security services had previously attempted kidnappings and killings targeting Americans, using methods ranging from firearms to more covert tactics such as poisoning, arson and suffocation.

According to the report, Iranian operatives often rely on individuals with legal status or access within the United States and have used digital tools including social media monitoring, livestreams and mapping applications to identify and surveil potential targets. It also cited the use of cyber tactics such as phishing campaigns.

The report further warned that Iran has attempted to lure individuals to third countries closer to its territory, “almost certainly for kidnapping and eventual executions.”U.S. public opinion has remained cautious about the conflict, with a Reuters/Ipsos poll last month showing that roughly two-thirds of Americans favor ending U.S. involvement quickly, underscoring the sensitivity surrounding threat assessments and policy responses.

Law enforcement agencies were urged to remain vigilant and coordinate closely with federal authorities on any emerging threats.

This wasn’t the clean espionage of Hollywood—it was messy, lonely, and treacherous.

He was just 23 years old when he vanished from India—not into thin air, but into a role so consuming, so dangerous, that it would take everything from him, even his name. He resurfaced across the border in Pakistan as Nabi Ahmed Shakir, a young Muslim law student from Islamabad.

Behind that façade was Ravinder Kaushik, a deeply trained Indian intelligence operative, who would go on to penetrate the Pakistani Army, rise to the rank of Major, and live a double life of immeasurable risk—for a country that would eventually forget him.

Today, as borderlines tighten and intelligence wars evolve into digital domains, Ravinder Kaushik’s human story rises from the pages of history as a haunting reminder: the greatest spies aren’t found in surveillance rooms or drone footage. They walk among enemies, living lies to protect lives.

From Spotlight to Shadows

Born on April 11, 1952, in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, Kaushik was no ordinary boy. A gifted actor and orator, he made waves on the theatre circuit during college. At SD Bihani College, his moving mono-act of an Indian soldier withstanding enemy torture caught the attention of RAW recruiters. It wasn’t just a performance. It was prophecy.

In 1973, RAW—India’s external intelligence agency—recruited the 21-year-old and subjected him to a rigorous two-year training regime. He learned Urdu, Islamic customs, Pakistani etiquette, and the subtle mechanics of espionage. The transformation was so complete that he underwent circumcision to pass as a true Muslim. And with that, Ravinder Kaushik ceased to exist.

A Life in Enemy Ranks

Kaushik arrived in Pakistan in 1975, posing as Nabi Ahmed Shakir. He enrolled in Karachi University to study law, building a convincing civilian front. Soon after, his academic record earned him a place in the Pakistani Army’s Military Accounts Department—a move that stunned even the most hardened RAW veterans.

By 1979, he was a Major—the first Indian agent to infiltrate the Pakistani military at such a level. He married a local woman, Amanat, and had a child, solidifying his cover. But what his family in Pakistan never knew was that every day, he lived in silent service to India, secretly sending classified troop positions, war strategies, and operational blueprints across the border.

For four years, from 1979 to 1983, his reports helped India thwart potential wars and cross-border threats, saving untold numbers of civilian and military lives. So vital was his intelligence that Prime Minister Indira Gandhi herself reportedly called him “The Black Tiger.”

But even the perfect spy can only balance for so long on a wire stretched over fire. Kaushik’s deception wasn’t digital—it was human. He prayed like a Muslim, celebrated Eid, played cricket with Pakistani officers, and kept fasts during Ramadan. His intelligence dispatches were transmitted through invisible ink, dead drops, and relays via agents in Kuwait and Dubai.

This wasn’t the clean espionage of Hollywood—it was messy, lonely, and treacherous. In an age with no GPS trackers or secure satellite phones, one misstep meant death.

And that step came in 1983.

RAW sent another agent, Inyat Masih, into Pakistan to re-establish contact with Kaushik. But Masih was caught, and under severe torture by ISI, he revealed Kaushik’s identity. A trap was set. Believing Masih’s ruse, Kaushik walked straight into it.

He was arrested instantly.

Torture, Silence, and Prison Walls

For the next two years, Kaushik was kept in Sialkot under intense interrogation. He was tortured—physically and mentally. But he never broke. He never betrayed another name, another mission.

In 1985, he was sentenced to death, but the Pakistani Supreme Court commuted it to life imprisonment. He was shuffled between prisons—Sialkot, Kot Lakhpat, Mianwali—slowly fading behind iron gates.

His only connection to the outside world came through smuggled letters to his family in India. In one of them, he bitterly wrote: “Had I been an American, I would have been out of this jail in three days.”

But India was silent. No rescue mission. No diplomatic plea. Only a whisper of gratitude hidden behind red-taped silence.

In November 2001, after 16 years of suffering, Kaushik died in Mianwali Jail—from tuberculosis and heart disease. No last rites. No coffin. He was buried anonymously inside prison walls, forgotten by both the land he served and the one he infiltrated.

Why Ravinder Kaushik Matters Today

His story inspired films like Ek Tha Tiger and Romeo Akbar Walter. But none bore his name in the credits. None sought permission from his family. Even here, he remained a ghost—honored in shadows, yet denied in daylight.

Within RAW circles, he is still legend. Yet the public memory barely stirs when his name is spoken. No roads, no medals, no memorials.

What then, is the value of sacrifice, if not remembered?

His story isn’t just about India or Pakistan. It’s about the human price of patriotism, the emotional toll of espionage, and the invisible wars that shape nations long before formal declarations.

In an era of artificial intelligence and cyberwarfare, Kaushik’s legacy reminds us: spies are still flesh and blood. They love, cry, ache, and break—but never on paper. Only in prison cells, through ink-smudged letters, and whispered names.

Ravinder Kaushik didn’t just serve India. He became the border. Every day he lived in Pakistan was a day India remained one step ahead. Yet, when he needed a voice, he heard none.

We owe him more than silence.

It is time India writes his name in textbooks. It is time children learn that freedom sometimes wears enemy uniforms. That sometimes, the greatest patriots are those we never know existed.

May we say his name louder now: Ravinder Kaushik. May we salute the man who became The Black Tiger—and gave his roar in silence.