A member of an anti-Zionist Orthodox group based in Jerusalem has been charged with intending to spy for Iran.

According to Israeli intelligence agency Shin Bet, the man, who belongs to the Neturei Karta movement, is alleged to have visited the Iranian embassy in Berlin in 2011, where he offered his services in gathering information on Israel .

Shin Bet claimed that the 47-year-old, whose name has not been released, told embassy officials during a meeting that he was prepared to kill Zionists, and that he wanted to replace the Jewish state with a “government of goyim” .

After he returned to Israel, he tried to maintain contact with Iranian representatives using an email account they set up for him.

Shin Bet claimed that after he was arrested, “the detainee said he was acting out of hatred for the state of Israel and in order to get money.”

The man, who also faces the charge of making contact with a foreign agent, was arrested last month and held under a court-approved gag order.