Daniel Abed Khalife is a former British Army soldier and network engineer born in 2001 in London. He was convicted of spying for Iran after allegedly gathering and sharing sensitive military information, including the identities of special forces personnel, with Iranian contacts. Khalife was also charged for breaching the Official Secrets Act and terrorism offenses. In 2023, he escaped from HM Prison Wandsworth in London by concealing himself under a food delivery truck, prompting a nationwide police manhunt before being recaptured. In late 2024, he was found guilty and sentenced to 14 years and 3 months in prison.
Khalife joined the British Army at age 16, serving in the Royal Corps of Signals, which handles electronic warfare and communications. Despite showing potential early on, he became involved with Iranian intelligence, allegedly providing classified military data and fake explosive devices between 2019 and 2022. He was arrested in January 2022 but fled before trial and was later discharged from the army. His prison escape was noted as audacious, and he claimed it was to transfer to a safer prison; however, the court found his espionage and escape actions dangerous and serious breaches of UK national security laws.
Khalife has Lebanese heritage, grew up in southwest London, attended Teddington School, and was considered a normal teenager by acquaintances before his criminal activities surfaced.
