A jury at Woolwich Crown Court in southeast London found army soldier Daniel Khalife, 23, guilty of espionage and terrorism charges, including eliciting or attempting to elicit information likely to be useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism.

Prosecutors said he could have "seriously harmed" military personnel and "prejudiced" national security.

Khalife was found to have breached the Official Secrets Act and the Terrorism Act, having gathered "a very large body of restricted and classified material" while posted in the UK and the United States.

Prosecutors said he played a "cynical game" after he was contacted by a man linked to Iranian intelligence when he joined the army.

They said he subsequently told Britain's overseas intelligence agency MI6 he wanted to be a double agent.

Khalife admitted during trial to escaping from a London prison in September 2023 strapped to the underside of a food delivery truck, a disappearance which sparked a nationwide manhunt.

"Daniel Khalife used his employment to undermine national security," said Bethan David from the Crown Prosecution Service, which brings prosecutions in England and Wales.

"He surreptitiously sought out and obtained copies of secret and sensitive information which he knew were protected and passed these on to individuals he believed to be acting on behalf of the Iranian state.

"The sharing of the information could have exposed military personnel to serious harm, or a risk to life, and prejudiced the safety and security of the United Kingdom."

Khalife, who grew up in southwest London with his Iranian mother, joined the army in 2018 aged 16.

He was accused of passing information to Iranian intelligence for cash, including the names of elite special forces personnel in 2021.

During the trial, jurors were shown a photograph from Khalife's iPhone of a handwritten list he had made of 15 soldiers, including their service number, rank, initials, surname and unit.

He allegedly remained in contact with Iranian handlers while posted to Fort Hood in Texas between February and April 2021, where he was given the second-highest level of NATO security clearance, one below "cosmic top secret".