Yehoshua "Shuki" Tartakovsky, a native of Jerusalem and a graduate of prestigious universities, is the Israeli who was arrested yesterday in Beirut on suspicion of espionage.
Tartakovsky, who grew up in a haredi family but left the religious lifestyle, entered Lebanon as an investigative journalist about two weeks ago.
According to a report by Al Akhbar, which is affiliated with Hezbollah, Tartakovsky was arrested in the Dahiyeh neighborhood, a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut. He was arrested for suspicious behavior, and during the investigation, an Israeli passport was found in his possession, even though he entered the country with a British passport. According to his social media accounts, this is not the first time he has visited Beirut.
Tartakovsky, a graduate of Brown University and LSE, is known among his acquaintances as a person with 'changing opinions.' A close friend described him as "a strange one" and "not the most sane."
"He changed opinions all the time," the friend said, "One day extreme right, the next day extreme left."
Over the years, Tartakovsky published many articles on controversial topics, including opposition to drafting haredim into the IDF and criticism of Israeli policy. However, his friends note that his positions were fickle, and sometimes contradicting himself.
It is interesting to note that following his arrest, at least one website where Tartakovsky published deleted all his articles, apparently in an attempt to dissociate from him.