Iran has acquired thousands of secret Israeli nuclear and defence documents, according to its state TV broadcaster.

An IRIB report on Saturday claimed: “Iran’s intelligence apparatus has obtained a vast quantity of strategic and sensitive information and documents belonging to the Zionist regime”.

It said a mission to obtain the material – including documents, images and videos – was carried out “a while ago”.

Ronen Solomon, an Israeli intelligence analyst, told The Telegraph: “I don’t believe this latest information was gathered by Israelis, I think it’s been stolen by hacking, more likely by a big group like Anonymous for Justice.”

Mr Solomon said he suspected the operation took place last year. “Usually when someone steals something like this and sells it on the dark network, it takes time for someone to buy it as the price negotiation and authentication takes time,” he added.

A Microsoft report last year said Israel had become the top target of state-backed Iranian cyberattacks, overtaking the US.

Israel has not commented on the claims. “We don’t know if it’s information which is scientific or operational, and it could maybe be something like details of the supply chain, but it could also be a psychological operation,” Mr Solomon said.

Dozens of Israeli citizens have been arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, with Tehran launching an unprecedented wave of operations aimed at intelligence gathering and assassinating the Jewish state’s top political and military figures.

Last month, two Israeli men were arrested on suspicion of spying in the home town of Israel Katz, the defence minister.

Mr Katz said he believed the men had been involved in “an Iranian plot to harm me as defence minister of the State of Israel”.

Sites such as the operating rooms of Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system and the secretive nuclear site in Dimona, have been at the centre of Iran’s secret operations.