Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national
intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a government agency responsible for the collection, analysis, and exploitation of information in support of law enforcement, national security, military, public safety, and foreign policy objectives.
Means of informa ...
of
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
Shin Bet
The Israel Security Agency (ISA; he, שֵׁירוּת הַבִּיטָּחוֹן הַכְּלָלִי; ''Sherut ha-Bitaẖon haKlali''; "the General Security Service"; ar, جهاز الأمن العام), better known by the acronym Shabak ( he, ...
covert operation
A covert operation is a military operation intended to conceal the identity of (or allow plausible deniability by) the party that instigated the operation. Covert operations should not be confused with clandestine operations, which are performed ...
s, and
counter-terrorism
Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that Government, governments, law enforcement, business, and Intelligence agency, intellig ...
. Its director answers directly and only to the
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
. Its annual budget is estimated to be around 10 billion shekels (US$2.73 billion) and it is estimated that it employs around 7,000 people directly, making it the one of the world's largest espionage agencies. Unlike other security bodies (such as the Israel Defense Forces or the Israel Security Agency), its purpose, objectives, roles, missions, powers or budget have not been defined in any law.
History
Mossad was formed on December 13, 1949, as the Central Institute for Coordination at the recommendation of Prime Minister
David Ben-Gurion
David Ben-Gurion ( ; he, דָּוִד בֶּן-גּוּרִיּוֹן ; born David Grün; 16 October 1886 – 1 December 1973) was the primary national founder of the State of Israel and the first prime minister of Israel. Adopting the na ...
to
Reuven Shiloah
Reuven Shiloah ( he, ראובן שילוח; December 1909 – 1959) was the first Director of the Mossad from 1949 to 1953.
Biography
Reuven Zaslani (later Shiloah) was born in Ottoman-ruled Jerusalem. His father was a rabbi. Shiloah married ...
. Ben Gurion wanted a central body to coordinate and improve cooperation between the existing security services—the army's intelligence department ( AMAN), the Internal Security Service (''
Shin Bet
The Israel Security Agency (ISA; he, שֵׁירוּת הַבִּיטָּחוֹן הַכְּלָלִי; ''Sherut ha-Bitaẖon haKlali''; "the General Security Service"; ar, جهاز الأمن العام), better known by the acronym Shabak ( he, ...
''), and the foreign office's "political department". In March 1951, it was reorganized and made a part of the prime minister's office, reporting directly to the prime minister.
Organization
Mossad has been described by
Ronen Bergman
Ronen Bergman ( he, רונן ברגמן; born June 16, 1972) is an Israeli investigative journalist and author. He is a senior political and military analyst for ''Yedioth Ahronoth'', Israel's largest-circulation daily.
Bergman has written for ' ...
as a " deep state" because of the way (justified by "state security") that it has been able to carry out actions that would otherwise be subject to prosecution.
Units
The largest department of Mossad is Collections, tasked with many aspects of conducting espionage overseas. Employees in the Collections Department operate under a variety of covers, including diplomatic and unofficial. The Political Action and Liaison Department is responsible for working with allied foreign intelligence services, and nations that have no normal diplomatic relations with Israel. Additionally, Mossad has a Research Department, tasked with intelligence production, and a Technology Department concerned with the development of tools for Mossad activities.
Metsada
Metsada is a unit responsible for attacking the enemy. Metsada runs "small units of combatants" whose missions include "assassinations and sabotage".
Kidon
The Kidon is a unit which belongs to the Caesarea department (one of Mossad's eight departments). It is described by Yaakov Katz as "an elite group of expert assassins who operate under the Caesarea branch of the espionage organization. Not much is known about this mysterious unit, details of which are some of the most closely guarded secrets in the Israeli intelligence community." It recruits from "former soldiers from the elite IDF special force units." This unit has been a part of Israel's policy of assassinations, which according to
Ronen Bergman
Ronen Bergman ( he, רונן ברגמן; born June 16, 1972) is an Israeli investigative journalist and author. He is a senior political and military analyst for ''Yedioth Ahronoth'', Israel's largest-circulation daily.
Bergman has written for ' ...
is a policy that Israel has used more than any other country in the West since World War II, stating it has carried out at least 2,700 assassination missions.
Venture capital
Mossad opened a venture capital fund in June 2017, in order to invest in hi-techstartups to develop new cyber technologies.ISRAEL'S MOSSAD IS LOOKING FOR A FEW GOOD STARTUPS BY HERB KEINON, JUNE 27, 2017, ''Jerusalem Post'' The names of technology startups funded by Mossad will not be published.
Operation Harpoon
Together with
Shurat HaDin
Shurat HaDin (aka. Israel Law Center (ILC)) is an Israeli non-governmental organization (NGO) founded in Tel Aviv in 2003. Shurat HaDin has been described by some as a civil rights organization and others as a pro-Israel lawfare-waging NG ...
, Mossad started Operation Harpoon, for "destroying terrorists’ money networks.”
Motto
Mossad's former motto, ''be-tachbūlōt ta`aseh lekhā milchāmāh'' ( he, בתחבולות תעשה לך מלחמה) is a quote from the Bible (Proverbs 24:6): "For by wise guidance you can wage your war" (
NRSV
The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Bible published in 1989 by the National Council of Churches.
). The motto was later changed to another Proverbs passage: ''be-'éyn tachbūlōt yippol `ām; ū-teshū`āh be-rov yō'éts'' ( he, באין תחבולות יפול עם, ותשועה ברוב יועץ, Proverbs 11:14). This is translated by NRSV as: "Where there is no guidance, a nation falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety."
Directors
*
Reuven Shiloah
Reuven Shiloah ( he, ראובן שילוח; December 1909 – 1959) was the first Director of the Mossad from 1949 to 1953.
Biography
Reuven Zaslani (later Shiloah) was born in Ottoman-ruled Jerusalem. His father was a rabbi. Shiloah married ...
Shabtai Shavit
Shabtai Shavit ( he, שבתי שביט; born 17 July 1939) is a former director general of the Israeli Mossad
Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחד ...
Yossi Cohen
Yosef "Yossi" Meir Cohen ( he, יוסף מאיר כהן; born 10 September 1961) was the Director of Mossad, the national intelligence agency of Israel.
Early life
Cohen was born in Jerusalem to a religious family and grew up in the Katamon nei ...
''Sayanim'' ( he, סייענים, lit. ''Helpers, Assistants'') are unpaid Jewish civilians that help Mossad out of a sense of devotion for Israel. They are recruited by Mossad's field agents, ''katsas'', to provide logistical support for Mossad operations. A Sayan running a rental agency, for instance, could help Mossad agents rent a car without the usual documentation. The usage of Sayanim allows the Mossad to operate with a slim budget yet conduct vast operations worldwide. Sayanim can have dual citizenships but are often not Israeli citizens.
The sayanim concept was created by Meir Amit in the 1960s. According to Gordon Thomas, there were 4,000 sayanim in Britain and some 16,000 sayanim in the United States in 1998.
Israeli students called ''bodlim'' are often used as gofers for Mossad.
Africa
Egypt
* Provision of intelligence for the cutting of communications between Port Said and Cairo in 1956.
* Mossad spy
Wolfgang Lotz
Wolfgang Lotz (6 January 1921 – 13 May 1993), who later adopted the Hebrew name Ze'ev Gur-Arie, was an Israeli spy in Egypt during the 1960s providing intelligence and conducting operations against Egyptian military scientists. He was arrest ...
, holding West German citizenship, infiltrated Egypt in 1957, and gathered intelligence on Egyptian missile sites, military installations, and industries. He also composed a list of German rocket scientists working for the Egyptian government, and sent some of them letter bombs. After the East German head of state made a state visit to Egypt, the Egyptian government detained thirty West German citizens as a goodwill gesture. Lotz, assuming that he had been discovered, confessed to his cold war espionage activities.
* After a tense May 25, 1967, confrontation with CIA Tel Aviv station chief John Hadden, who warned that the United States would help defend Egypt if Israel launched a surprise attack, Mossad director Meir Amit flew to Washington, D.C. to meet with U.S. Defense Secretary
Robert McNamara
Robert Strange McNamara (; June 9, 1916 – July 6, 2009) was an American business executive and the eighth United States Secretary of Defense, serving from 1961 to 1968 under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He remains the ...
and reported back to the Israeli cabinet that the United States had given Israel "a flickering green light" to attack.
* Provision of intelligence on the
Egyptian Air Force
The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) ( ar, القوات الجوية المصرية, El Qūwāt El Gawīyä El Maṣrīya), is the aviation branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces that is responsible for all airborne defence missions and operates all mili ...
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...
.
* Operation Bulmus 6 – Intelligence assistance in the Commando Assault on
Green Island, Egypt
Green Island ( ar, الجزيرة الخضراء)Transliterated as: / / / is a small (145 m long x 50 m) artificial island in the Red Sea at the southern mouth of the Suez Canal.
History
Green Island was a fortress built by the British Army ( ...
during the
War of Attrition
The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...
.
* Operation Damocles – A campaign of assassination and intimidation against
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
rocket scientists employed by
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
in building missiles.
** A bomb sent to the Heliopolis rocket factory killed five Egyptian workers, allegedly sent by Otto Skorzeny on behalf of the Mossad.
** Heinz Krug, 49, the chief of a Munich company supplying military hardware to Egypt disappeared in September 1962 and is believed to have been assassinated by Otto Skorzeny on behalf of the Mossad.
Morocco
In September 1956, Mossad established a secretive network in
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...
to smuggle
Moroccan Jews
Moroccan Jews ( ar, اليهود المغاربة, al-Yahūd al-Maghāriba he, יהודים מרוקאים, Yehudim Maroka'im) are Jews who live in or are from Morocco. Moroccan Jews constitute an ancient community dating to Roman times. Jews b ...
to Israel after a ban on immigration to Israel was imposed.
In early 1991, two Mossad operatives infiltrated the Moroccan port of Casablanca and planted a tracking device on the freighter ''Al-Yarmouk'', which was carrying a cargo of
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and ...
n missiles bound for Syria. The ship was to be sunk by the
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force (IAF; he, זְרוֹעַ הָאֲוִיר וְהֶחָלָל, Zroa HaAvir VeHahalal, tl, "Air and Space Arm", commonly known as , ''Kheil HaAvir'', "Air Corps") operates as the aerial warfare branch of the Israel Defense ...
, but the mission was later called off by Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin
Yitzhak Rabin (; he, יִצְחָק רַבִּין, ; 1 March 1922 – 4 November 1995) was an Israeli politician, statesman and general. He was the fifth Prime Minister of Israel, serving two terms in office, 1974–77, and from 1992 until ...
.
Tunisia
The 1988 killing of Khalil al-Wazir (Abu Jihad), a founder of
Fatah
Fatah ( ar, فتح '), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social democratic political party and the largest faction of the Confederation, confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organizati ...
.
The alleged killing of Salah Khalaf, head of intelligence of the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...
and second in command of
Fatah
Fatah ( ar, فتح '), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social democratic political party and the largest faction of the Confederation, confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organizati ...
behind
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...
, in 1991.
The 2016 alleged killing of
Hamas
Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...
operative, Mohammad al-Zawahri, in Tunisia. Mohammad Zawari, known to Israel's security echelon as "The Engineer", was a Hamas affiliated engineer who was believed to be constructing drones for the group. He was shot at close range.
In the late 1990s, after Mossad was tipped off to the presence of two
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
ian agents in
Johannesburg
Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a Megacity#List of megacities, megacity, and is List of urban areas by p ...
on a mission to procure advanced weapons systems from Denel, a Mossad agent was deployed, and met up with a local Jewish contact. Posing as South African intelligence, they abducted the Iranians, drove them to a warehouse, and beat and intimidated them before forcing them to leave the country.
Sudan
After the
1994 AMIA bombing
The AMIA bombing occurred on 18 July 1994 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and targeted the Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA; ), a Jewish Community Centre. Executed as a suicidal attack, a bomb-laden van was driven into the AMIA buildi ...
, the largest bombing in Argentine history, Mossad began gathering intelligence for a raid by Israeli Special Forces on the
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
ian embassy in
Khartoum
Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...
as retaliation. The operation was called off due to fears that another attack against worldwide Jewish communities might take place as revenge. Mossad also assisted in Operation Moses, the evacuation of
Ethiopian Jews
The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...
to Israel from a famine-ridden region of Sudan in 1984, also maintaining a relationship with the Ethiopian government.
Americas
Argentina
In 1960, Mossad discovered that the
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...
leader
Adolf Eichmann
Otto Adolf Eichmann ( ,"Eichmann" '' Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
. A team of five Mossad agents led by Shimon Ben Aharon slipped into Argentina and, through surveillance, confirmed that he had been living there under the name of Ricardo Klement. He was abducted on May 11, 1960 and taken to a hideout. He was subsequently smuggled to Israel, where he was tried and executed. Argentina protested what it considered as the violation of its sovereignty, and the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
Security Council
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...
noted that "repetition of acts such as hiswould involve a breach of the principles upon which international order is founded, creating an atmosphere of insecurity and distrust incompatible with the preservation of peace" while also acknowledging that "Eichmann should be brought to appropriate justice for the crimes of which he is accused" and that "this resolution should in no way be interpreted as condoning the odious crimes of which Eichmann is accused." Mossad abandoned a second operation, intended to capture Josef Mengele.
United States
During the 1990s, Mossad discovered a
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's paramil ...
agent operating within the United States in order to procure materials needed to manufacture IEDs and other weapons. In a joint operation with U.S. intelligence, the agent was kept under surveillance in hopes that he would betray more Hezbollah operatives, but was eventually arrested.
Mossad informed the FBI and CIA in August 2001 that, based on its intelligence, as many as 200 terrorists were slipping into the United States and planning "a major assault on the United States." The Israeli intelligence agency cautioned the FBI that it had picked up indications of a "large-scale target" in the United States and that Americans would be "very vulnerable."Officials Told of ‘Major Assault’ Plans However, "It is not known whether U.S. authorities thought the warning to be credible, or whether it contained enough details to allow counter-terrorism teams to come up with a response." A month later, terrorists struck at the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the largest terrorist attack in history.
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...
A report published on the Israeli military's official website in February, 2014 said that Middle Eastern countries that cooperate with Israel (Mossad) are the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
and
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries by area, fifth-largest country in Asia ...
. The report claimed that Bahrain has been providing Israel with intelligence on
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
ian and Palestinian organizations. The report also highlights the growing secret cooperation with Saudi Arabia, claiming that Mossad has been in direct contact with Saudi intelligence about
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
’s nuclear energy program.
Iran
Prior to the
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution ( fa, انقلاب ایران, Enqelâb-e Irân, ), also known as the Islamic Revolution ( fa, انقلاب اسلامی, Enqelâb-e Eslâmī), was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dyna ...
of 1978–79,
SAVAK
SAVAK ( fa, ساواک, abbreviation for ''Sâzemân-e Ettelâ'ât va Amniat-e Kešvar'', ) was the secret police, domestic security and intelligence service in Iran during the reign of the Pahlavi dynasty. SAVAK operated from 1957 until prim ...
(Organization of National Security and Information), the Iranian secret police and intelligence service was created under the guidance of United States and Israeli intelligence officers in 1957. After security relations between the United States and Iran grew more distant in the early 1960s which led the CIA training team to leave
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
, Mossad became increasingly active in Iran, "training SAVAK personnel and carrying out a broad variety of joint operations with SAVAK."
A US intelligence official told ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large n ...
'' that Israel orchestrated the defection of Iranian general
Ali Reza Askari
Ali-Reza Asgari ( fa, علیرضا عسگری, born 1 November 1952) was an Iranian general of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, deputy defense minister, and cabinet member of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami.
Asgari had been "pushed asi ...
on February 7, 2007. This has been denied by Israeli spokesman Mark Regev. ''
The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, wh ...
'' reported that Askari had been a Mossad asset since 2003, and left only when his cover was about to be blown.
Iranian Intelligence Minister Heydar Moslehi has accused Mossad of assassination plots and killings of Iranian physicists in 2010. Reports have noted that such information has not yet been evidently proven. Iranian state TV broadcast a stated confession from Majid Jamali-Fashi, an Iranian man who claimed to have visited Israel to be trained by Mossad.
''
Le Figaro
''Le Figaro'' () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It is headquartered on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. The oldest national newspaper in France, ''Le Figaro'' is one of three French Newspaper of recor ...
'' claimed that Mossad was possibly behind a blast at the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Imam Ali military base, on October 12, 2011. The explosion at the base killed 18 and injured 10 others. Among the dead was also general Hassan Tehrani Moghaddam, who served as the commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ missile program and was a crucial figure in building Iran's long-range missile program. The base is believed to store long-range missiles, including the
Shahab-3
The Shahab-3 ( fa, شهاب ۳, Šahâb 3; meaning "meteor-3") is a liquid-propelled medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) developed by Iran and based on the North Korean Nodong-1. The Shahab-3 has a range of ; a MRBM variant can now reach (c ...
Majid Shahriari
Majid Shahriari ( fa, مجید شهریاری, c. 1966 – 29 November 2010) was a top Iranian nuclear scientist and physicist who worked with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.
Career
He specialized in neutron transport, a phenomenon tha ...
Mostafa Ahmadi-Roshan Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan (Persian: مصطفی احمدی روشن) (8 September 1979 – 11 January 2012) was an Iranian nuclear scientist who was assassinated in 2012. He was also deputy of commerce at the Natanz nuclear power plant.
Life
Ahmadi Rosh ...
; scientists involved in the Iranian nuclear program. It is also suspected of being behind the attempted assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Fereydoon Abbasi. Meir Dagan, who served as Director of Mossad from 2002 until 2009, while not taking credit for the assassinations, praised them in an interview with a journalist, saying "the removal of important brains" from the Iranian nuclear project had achieved so-called "white
defection
In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state in exchange for allegiance to another, changing sides in a way which is considered illegitimate by the first state. More broadly, defection involves abandoning a person, ...
s," frightening other Iranian nuclear scientists into requesting that they be transferred to civilian projects.
In early February 2012, Mossad director Tamir Pardo met with U.S. national security officials in Washington, D.C. to sound them out on possible American reactions in the event Israel attacked Iran over the objections of the United States.
In 2018 the Mossad infiltrated into Iran's secret nuclear archive in
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...
and smuggled over 100,000 documents and computer files to Israel. The documents and files showed that the Iranian AMAD Project aimed to develop
nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...
s. Israel shared the information with its allies, including European countries and the United States.
Iraq
Assistance in the defection and rescuing of the family of Munir Redfa, an
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
i pilot who defected and flew his
MiG-21
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 (russian: Микоян и Гуревич МиГ-21; NATO reporting name: Fishbed) is a supersonic jet fighter and interceptor aircraft, designed by the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau in the Soviet Union. Its nickn ...
to Israel in 1966: " Operation Diamond". Redfa's entire family was also successfully smuggled from Iraq to Israel. Previously unknown information about the MiG-21 was subsequently shared with the United States.
Operation Sphinx – Between 1978 and 1981, obtained highly sensitive information about Iraq's Osirak
nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device used to initiate and control a fission nuclear chain reaction or nuclear fusion reactions. Nuclear reactors are used at nuclear power plants for electricity generation and in nuclear marine propulsion. Heat from nu ...
by recruiting an Iraqi nuclear scientist in France.
Operation Bramble Bush II – In the 1990s, Mossad began scouting locations in Iraq where
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein ( ; ar, صدام حسين, Ṣaddām Ḥusayn; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolution ...
could be ambushed by
Sayeret Matkal
General Staff Reconnaissance Unit (formerly Unit 269 or Unit 262), more commonly known as Sayeret Matkal ( he, סיירת מטכ״ל) is the special reconnaissance unit (''sayeret'') of Israel's General Staff (''matkal''). It is the prime special ...
commandos inserted into Iraq from
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...
. The mission was called off due to Operation Desert Fox and the ongoing Israeli-Arab peace process.
Jordan
In what is thought to have been a reprisal action for a Hamas suicide-bombing in Jerusalem on July 30, 1997 that killed 16 Israelis, Benjamin Netanyahu authorised an operation against
Khaled Mashal
Khaled Mashal ( ar, خالد مشعل, Khālid Mashʿal, Levantine Arabic: , born 28 May 1956) is a former leader of the Palestinian organization Hamas
Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian ...
, the Hamas representative in Jordan. On September 25, 1997, Mashal was injected in the ear with a toxin (thought to have been a derivative of the synthetic opiate Fentanyl called Levofentanyl). Jordanian authorities apprehended two Mossad agents posing as Canadian tourists and trapped a further six in the Israeli embassy. In exchange for their release, an Israeli physician had to fly to Amman and deliver an antidote for Mashal. The fallout from the failed killing eventually led to the release of Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the founder and spiritual leader of the Hamas movement, and scores of Hamas prisoners. Netanyahu flew into Amman on September 29 to apologize personally to King Hussein, but he was instead met by the King's brother, Crown Prince Hassan.
Lebanon
The sending of
letter bombs
A letter bomb, also called parcel bomb, mail bomb, package bomb, note bomb, message bomb, gift bomb, present bomb, delivery bomb, surprise bomb, postal bomb, or post bomb, is an explosive device sent via the mail, postal service, and designed ...
to PFLP member Bassam Abu Sharif in 1972. Sharif was severely wounded, but survived.
The killing of the Palestinian writer and leading PFLP member Ghassan Kanafani by a car bomb in 1972.
The provision of intelligence and operational assistance in the 1973 Operation Spring of Youth special forces raid on
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
Beirut
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...
by a car bomb.
Providing intelligence for the killing of Abbas al-Musawi, secretary general of Hezbollah, in southern Lebanon in 1992.
Allegedly killed
Jihad Ahmed Jibril
Mohammed Jihad Ahmed Jibril (1961 – 20 May 2002) was the son of Ahmed Jibril, founder of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command (PFLP-GC). He was assassinated in Beirut on 20 May 2002.
Early life and education
Ji ...
, the leader of the military wing of the PFLP-GC, in Beirut in 2002.
Allegedly killed Ali Hussein Saleh, member of Hezbollah, in Beirut in 2003.
Allegedly killed Ghaleb Awwali, a senior Hezbollah official, in Beirut in 2004.
Allegedly killed
Mahmoud al-Majzoub
Mahmoud al-Majzoub also known as ''Abu Hamza'' (c. 1965 – May 26, 2006) was a top Palestinian Islamic Jihad official and a senior leader of the group. He was also a liaison officer who had strong ties to Iran's IRGC and Hezbollah. He was killed i ...
, a leader of
Palestinian Islamic Jihad
The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine ( ar, حركة الجهاد الإسلامي في فلسطين, ''Harakat al-Jihād al-Islāmi fi Filastīn''), known in the West simply as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), is a Palestinian Islamist pa ...
, in Sidon in 2006.
Mossad was suspected of establishing a large spy network in Lebanon, recruited from
Druze
The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings o ...
,
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...
, and
Sunni Muslim
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
communities, and officials in the Lebanese government, to spy on
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's paramil ...
and its Iranian Revolutionary Guard advisors. Some have allegedly been active since the
1982 Lebanon War
The 1982 Lebanon War, dubbed Operation Peace for Galilee ( he, מבצע שלום הגליל, or מבצע של"ג ''Mivtsa Shlom HaGalil'' or ''Mivtsa Sheleg'') by the Israeli government, later known in Israel as the Lebanon War or the First L ...
. In 2009, Lebanese Security Services supported by Hezbollah's intelligence unit, and working in collaboration with Syria,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
, and possibly Russia, launched a major crackdown which resulted in the arrests of around 100 alleged spies "working for Israel". Previously, in 2006, the Lebanese army uncovered a network that allegedly assassinated several Lebanese and Palestinian leaders on behalf of Israeli intelligence agency Mossad.
Palestine
Caesarea tried for many years to assassinate
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and st ...
leader
Yasser Arafat
Mohammed Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf al-Qudwa al-Husseini (4 / 24 August 1929 – 11 November 2004), popularly known as Yasser Arafat ( , ; ar, محمد ياسر عبد الرحمن عبد الرؤوف عرفات القدوة الحسيني, Mu ...
, a job later tasked by Israel's
Minister of Defense
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in so ...
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon (; ; ; also known by his diminutive Arik, , born Ariel Scheinermann, ; 26 February 1928 – 11 January 2014) was an Israeli general and politician who served as the 11th Prime Minister of Israel from March 2001 until April 2006.
S ...
to a military special ops task force code named "Salt Fish," later renamed "Operation Goldfish," specially created for the job of assassinating Arafat, with Ronan Bergman suggesting that Israel used radiation poisoning to kill Yasser Arafat.
Syria
Eli Cohen
Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen ( he, אֱלִיָּהוּ בֵּן שָׁאוּל כֹּהֵן, ar, إيلياهو بن شاؤول كوهين; 6 December 1924 – 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israel ...
infiltrated the highest echelons of the Syrian government, was a close friend of the Syrian President, and was considered for the post of Minister of Defense. He gave his handlers a complete plan of the Syrian defenses on the
Golan Heights
The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between d ...
, the Syrian Armed Forces order of battle, and a complete list of the Syrian military's weapons inventory. He also ordered the planting of trees by every Syrian fortified position under the pretext of shading soldiers, but the trees actually served as targeting markers for the Israel Defense Forces. He was discovered by Syrian and Soviet intelligence, tried in secret, and executed publicly in 1965. His information played a crucial role during the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states (primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, S ...
.
On 1 April 1978, 12 Syrian military and secret service personnel were killed by a booby trapped sophisticated Israeli listening device planted on the main telephone cable between Damascus and Jordan.Ronen Bergman The Spies Inside Damascus ''
Foreign Policy
A state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterally or through ...
'', September 19, 2013
The alleged death of General Anatoly Kuntsevich, who from the late 1990s was suspected of aiding the Syrians in the manufacture of VX nerve-gas, in exchange for which he was paid huge amounts of money by the Syrian government. On April 3, 2002, Kuntsevich died mysteriously during a plane journey, amid allegations that Mossad was responsible.
The alleged killing of Izz El-Deen Sheikh Khalil, a senior member of the military wing of
Hamas
Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...
, in an automobile booby trap in September 2004 in Damascus.
The uncovering of a nuclear reactor being built in Syria as a result of surveillance by Mossad of Syrian officials working under the command of
Muhammad Suleiman
Muhammad Suleiman (Also Mohammad Sulayman) ( ar, محمد سليمان) (1959 – 1 August 2008) was a Syrian Army General and Special Presidential Advisor for Arms Procurement and Strategic Weapons to Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.
He was ki ...
. As a result, the Syrian nuclear reactor was destroyed by Israeli Air Forces in September 2007 (see Operation Orchard).
The alleged killing of Muhammad Suleiman, head of Syria's nuclear program, in 2008. Suleiman was on a beach in
Tartus
)
, settlement_type = City
, image_skyline =
, imagesize =
, image_caption = Tartus corniche Port of Tartus • Tartus beach and boulevard Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa • Al-Assad Stadium& ...
and was killed by a sniper firing from a boat.
On July 25, 2007, the al-Safir chemical weapons depot exploded, killing 15 Syrian personnel as well as 10 Iranian engineers. Syrian investigations blamed Israeli sabotage.
The alleged killing of Imad Mughniyah, a senior leader of Hezbollah complicit in the 1983 United States embassy bombing, with an exploding headrest in Damascus in 2008.
The decomposed body of Yuri Ivanov, the deputy head of the GRU, Russia's foreign military intelligence service, was found on a Turkish beach in early August 2010,''Top Russian spy’s body washes up 'after swimming accident’'' Telegraph amid allegations that Mossad may have played a role. He had disappeared while staying near Latakia, Syria.
Mossad was accused of being behind the assassination of Aziz Asbar, a senior Syrian scientist responsible for developing long-range rockets and chemical weapons programs. He was killed in a car bomb in Masyaf on August 5, 2018.
United Arab Emirates
Mossad is suspected of killing Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, a senior Hamas military commander, in January 2010 at
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics ...
,
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at ...
. The team which carried out the killing is estimated, on the basis of
CCTV
Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly tr ...
and other evidence, to have consisted of at least 26 agents traveling on bogus passports. The operatives entered al-Mabhouh's hotel room, where Mabhouh was subjected to electric shocks and interrogated. The door to his room was reported to have been locked from the inside. Although the UAE police and Hamas have declared Israel responsible for the killing, no direct evidence linking Mossad to the crime has been found. The agents' bogus passports included six British passports, cloned from those of real British nationals resident in Israel and suspected by Dubai, five Irish passports, apparently forged from those of living individuals, forged Australian passports that raised fears of reprisal against innocent victims of identity theft, a genuine German passport and a false French passport. Emirati police say they have fingerprint and DNA evidence of some of the attackers, as well as retinal scans of 11 suspects recorded at Dubai airport. Dubai's police chief has said "I am now completely sure that it was Mossad," adding: "I have presented the (Dubai) prosecutor with a request for the arrest of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and the head of Mossad," for the murder.
South and East Asia
=India
=
A
Rediff
Rediff.com (stylized as ''rediff.com'') is an Indian news, information, entertainment and shopping web portal. It was founded in 1996. It is headquartered in Mumbai, with offices in Bangalore, New Delhi and New York City.
, it had more than 300 ...
story in 2003 revealed that Mossad had clandestine links with the
Research and Analysis Wing
The Research and Analysis Wing (abbreviated R&AW; hi, ) is the foreign intelligence agency of India. The agency's primary function is gathering foreign intelligence, counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation, advising Indian policymakers, ...
(R&AW), India's external intelligence agency. When R&AW was founded in September 1968 by Rameshwar Nath Kao, he was advised by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to cultivate links with Mossad. This was suggested as a countermeasure to military links between that of Pakistan and China, as well as with
North Korea
North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and ...
. Israel was also concerned that Pakistani army officers were training Libyans and Iranians in handling Chinese and North Korean military equipment.RAW and MOSSAD, the Secret Link ''rediff.com''
Pakistan believed intelligence relations between India and Israel threatened Pakistani security. When young Israeli tourists began visiting the Kashmir valley in the early 1990s, Pakistan suspected they were disguised Israeli army officers there to help Indian security forces with anti-terrorism operations. Israeli tourists were attacked, with one slain and another kidnapped. Pressure from the Kashmiri Muslim diaspora in the United States led to his release. Kashmiri Muslims feared that the attacks could isolate the American Jewish community, and result in them lobbying the US government against Kashmiri separatist groups.
''India Today'' reported that the two flats were RAW safe houses used as operational fronts for Mossad agents and housed Mossad's station chief between 1989 and 1992. RAW had reportedly decided to have closer ties to Mossad, and the subsequent secret operation was approved by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. ''India Today'' cites "RAW insiders" as saying that RAW agents hid a Mossad agent holding an Argentine passport and exchanged intelligence and expertise in operations, including negotiations for the release of an Israeli tourist by the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front militants in June 1991. When asked about the case Verma refused to speak about the companies, but claimed his relationship with them was purely professional. Raman stated, "Sometimes, spy agencies float companies for operational reasons. All I can say is that everything was done with government approval. Files were cleared by the then prime minister
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to bec ...
and his cabinet secretary. Balachandran stated, "It is true that we did a large number of operations but at every stage, we kept the Cabinet Secretariat and the prime minister in the loop."
In November 2015, ''The Times of India'' reported that agents from Mossad and MI5 were protecting Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the List of Prime Ministers of India, 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the List of chief ministers of Gujarat, Chief Minist ...
during his visit to Turkey. Modi was on a state visit to the United Kingdom and was scheduled to attend the 2015 G-20 Summit in Antalya, Turkey. The paper reported that the agents had been called in to provide additional cover to Modi's security detail, composed of India's Special Protection Group and secret agents from RAW and IB, in wake of the
November 2015 Paris attacks
The November 2015 Paris attacks () were a series of coordinated Islamist terrorist attacks that took place on Friday, 13 November 2015 in Paris, France, and the city's northern suburb, Saint-Denis. Beginning at 9:15p.m., three suicide bomber ...
.
=Malaysia
=
In 2018, Hamas and the family of Malaysian-based Hamas engineer and university lecturer Fadi Mohammad al-Batsh have accused the Mossad of assassinating him. In April 2018, al-Batsh was shot dead by two men on a motorbike in
Kuala Lumpur
, anthem = ''Maju dan Sejahtera''
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia
, pushpin_map_caption =
, coordinates =
, sub ...
. Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister
Ahmad Zahid Hamidi
Dato' Seri Dr. Ahmad Zahid bin Hamidi ( ms, أحمد زاهد بن حميدي, label= Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset; born 4 January 1953) is a Malaysian politician who has served as the 11th and 14th Deputy Prime Minister from July 2015 to ...
described the suspects as Europeans with links to an unidentified foreign intelligence agency. In response, Israeli Defense MinisterAvigdor Lieberman denied that Mossad was involved in al-Batsh's assassination and suggested that his death was the result of an internal Palestinian dispute. Hamas also issued a statement describing Batsh as a "martyr" and "distinguished scientist who has widely contributed to the energy sector."
In October 2022, the ''
New Straits Times
The ''New Straits Times'' is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print (though not the first), having been founded as ''The Straits Times'' on 15 July 1845. It was relaunched as the ' ...
'' and
Al Jazeera Arabic
Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera M ...
reported that several Malaysian Mossad operatives had attempted to kidnap two Palestinian computer experts in Kuala Lumpur in late September 2022. Though they managed to kidnap one of the men, the second escaped and alerted Malaysian Police. The operatives allegedly assisted Mossad officials via video call in interrogating and beating their captive, who was questioned about the computer programming and software capabilities of Hamas and its
Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades ( ar, كتائب الشهيد عز الدين القسام, , Battalions of martyr Izz ad-Din al-Qassam; also spelt Izzedine or Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades; often shortened to Al-Qassam Brigades, IQB
. With the aid of the second Palestinian man, Malaysian Police were able to track down the car registration plates to a house where the alleged kidnappers were arrested and the man was freed. According to Al Jazeera Arabic, a "well-informed Malaysian source" claimed that an investigation had uncovered an undercover 11-member Mossad cell in Malaysia that was involved in spying on important sites including airports, government electronic companies, and tracking down Palestinian activists. This Mossad cell allegedly consisted of Malaysian nationals who received training in Europe.
=North Korea
=
Mossad may have been involved in the 2004 explosion of Ryongchon, where several Syrian nuclear scientists working on the Syrian and Iranian nuclear-weapons programs were killed and a train carrying fissionable material was destroyed.Thomas, Gordon: ''Gideon's Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad'' (Fifth Edition)
=Pakistan
=
In a September 2003 news article, it was alleged by Rediff News that General Pervez Musharaf, the then-President of Pakistan, decided to establish a clandestine relationship between Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Mossad via officers of the two services posted at their embassies in Washington, DC.
=Sri Lanka
=
Mossad had helped both
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
and the Eelam. Mossad agent Victor Ostrovsky claimed that Mossad trained both the Sri Lankan armed forces and the LTTE while keeping the two separated.
Ravi Jayawardene Ravi may refer to:
People
* Ravi (name), including a list of people and characters with the name
* Ravi (composer) (1926–2012), Indian music director
* Ravi (Ivar Johansen) (born 1976), Norwegian musical artist
* Ravi (music director) (1926 ...
, head of the STF, had toured Israel in 1984 and took inspiration from the Israeli settlements in the
Palestinian Territories
The Palestinian territories are the two regions of the former Mandatory Palestine, British Mandate for Palestine that have been Military occupation, militarily occupied by Israel since the Six-Day War of 1967, namely: the West Bank (including E ...
to form armed Sinhalese settlements in strategic border areas of the Tamil-dominant Northern and Eastern provinces.
Europe
Austria
In 1954, after Mossad received intelligence that an Israeli officer who had access to classified military technologies, Major Alexander Israel, had approached Egyptian officials in Europe and offered to sell Israeli military secrets and documents, a team of Mossad and Shin Bet officers was quickly sent to Europe to locate him and abduct him, and located him in
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
. The mission was code-named Operation Bren. A female agent managed to lure him to a meeting through a
honey trap
Honey trapping is an investigative practice involving the use of romantic or sexual relationships for interpersonal, political (including state espionage), or monetary purpose. The ''honey pot or trap'' involves making contact with an individua ...
operation, and he was subsequently kidnapped, sedated, and flown to Israel aboard a waiting Israeli military plane. However, the plane had to make several refueling stops, and he was given an additional dose of sedatives each time, which ultimately caused him to overdose, killing him. Upon arrival in Israel, after it was discovered that he was dead, he was given a burial at sea, and the case remained highly classified for decades.
Mossad gathered information on Austrian politician Jörg Haider using a mole.
Belgium
Mossad is alleged to be responsible for the killing of Canadian engineer and
ballistics
Ballistics is the field of mechanics concerned with the launching, flight behaviour and impact effects of projectiles, especially ranged weapon munitions such as bullets, unguided bombs, rockets or the like; the science or art of designing ...
expert Gerald Bull on March 22, 1990. He was shot multiple times in the head outside his
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
apartment. Bull was at the time working for
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
supergun * for large military guns see Large-calibre artillery
* for the arcade game equipment see SuperGun
* the Iraq "Supergun affair" (a contemporary of Arms-to-Iraq
The Arms-to-Iraq affair concerned the uncovering of the government-endorsed sale of ar ...
. Others, including Bull's son, believe that Mossad is taking credit for an act they did not commit to scare off others who may try to help enemy regimes. The alternative theory is that Bull was killed by the CIA.
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
and
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkm ...
are also candidates for suspicion.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Assisted in air and overland evacuations of Bosnian Jews from war-torn
Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajev ...
to Israel in 1992 and 1993.
Cyprus
The killing of Hussein Al Bashir in Nicosia, Cyprus, in 1973 in relation to the Munich massacre.Israeli "Hits" On Terrorists Jewish Virtual Library, last updated December 18, 2007. Retrieved December 24, 2007.
France
Mossad allegedly assisted
Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria ...
's domestic security service in the disappearance of dissident politician Mehdi Ben Barka in 1965.
Cherbourg Project – Operation Noa, the 1969 smuggling of five Sa'ar 3-class missile boats out of Cherbourg.
The killing of Mahmoud Hamshari, coordinator of the Munich massacre, with an exploding telephone in his Paris apartment in 1972.
The killing of Basil Al-Kubaissi, who was involved in the Munich massacre, in Paris in 1973.
The killing of Mohammad Boudia, member of the PFLP, in Paris in 1973.
On April 5, 1979, Mossad agents are believed to have triggered an explosion which destroyed 60 percent of components being built in
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. The city is on t ...
for an Iraqi reactor. Although an environmental organization, ''Groupe des écologistes français'', unheard of before this incident, claimed credit for the blast, most French officials discount the claim. The reactor itself was subsequently destroyed by an Israeli air strike in 1981.
The alleged killing of Zuheir Mohsen, a pro-Syrian member of the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...
, in 1979.
The killing of Yehia El-Mashad, the head of the Iraq nuclear weapons program, in 1980.
The alleged killing of
Atef Bseiso
Atef Bseiso ( ar, عاطف بسيسو, 23 August 1948 – 8 June 1992) was the Palestine Liberation Organization's (PLO) liaison officer with foreign intelligence agencies. He was assassinated in Paris in 1992. Several theories exist regarding t ...
, a top intelligence officer of the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...
, in Paris in 1992. French police believe that a team of assassins followed Atef Bseiso from Berlin, where that first team connected with another team to close in on him in front of a Left Bank hotel, where he received three head-shots at point blank range.
Germany
Operation Plumbat (1968) was an operation by Lekem-Mossad to further Israel's nuclear program. The German freighter "Scheersberg A" disappeared on its way from Antwerp to
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...
along with its cargo of 200 tons of
yellowcake
Yellowcake (also called urania) is a type of uranium concentrate powder obtained from leach solutions, in an intermediate step in the processing of uranium ores. It is a step in the processing of uranium after it has been mined but before f ...
letter bombs
A letter bomb, also called parcel bomb, mail bomb, package bomb, note bomb, message bomb, gift bomb, present bomb, delivery bomb, surprise bomb, postal bomb, or post bomb, is an explosive device sent via the mail, postal service, and designed ...
during the Operation Wrath of God campaign. Some of these attacks were not fatal. Their purpose might not have been to kill the receiver. A Mossad letter bomb led to fugitive Nazi war-criminal
Alois Brunner
Alois Brunner (8 April 1912 – December 2001) was an Austrian (SS) SS-Hauptsturmführer who played a significant role in the implementation of the Holocaust through rounding up and deporting Jews in occupied Austria, Greece, Macedonia, France ...
's losing four fingers from his right hand in 1980.
The alleged targeted killing of Wadie Haddad, using poisoned chocolate. Haddad died on 28 March 1978, in the
German Democratic Republic
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
supposedly from leukemia. According to the book ''Striking Back'', published by Aharon Klein in 2006, Haddad was eliminated by Mossad, which had sent the
chocolate
Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form since at least the Olmec civil ...
-loving Haddad Belgian chocolates coated with a slow-acting and undetectable poison which caused him to die several months later. "It took him a few long months to die", Klein said in the book.
Mossad discovered that
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's paramil ...
had recruited a German national named Steven Smyrek, and that he was travelling to Israel. In an operation conducted by Mossad, the CIA, the German Internal Security agency Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (BfV), and the Israeli Internal Security agency
Shin Bet
The Israel Security Agency (ISA; he, שֵׁירוּת הַבִּיטָּחוֹן הַכְּלָלִי; ''Sherut ha-Bitaẖon haKlali''; "the General Security Service"; ar, جهاز الأمن العام), better known by the acronym Shabak ( he, ...
, Smyrek was kept under constant surveillance, and arrested as soon as he landed in Israel.
Greece
The killing of Zaiad Muchasi,
Fatah
Fatah ( ar, فتح '), formerly the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, is a Palestinian nationalist social democratic political party and the largest faction of the Confederation, confederated multi-party Palestine Liberation Organizati ...
representative to
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
, by an explosion in his Athens hotel room in 1973.
Ireland
The
assassination of Mahmoud Al-Mabhouh
The assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh ( ar, محمود المبحوح, ; 14 February 1961 – 19 January 2010) took place on 19 January 2010, in a hotel room in Dubai. Al-Mabhouh—a co-founder of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the ...
– a senior
Hamas
Hamas (, ; , ; an acronym of , "Islamic Resistance Movement") is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist, militant, and nationalist organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Bri ...
military commander – in
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics ...
, 2010, was suspected to be the work of Mossad, and there were eight Irish passports (six of which were used) fraudulently obtained by the Israeli embassy in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
for use by alleged Mossad agents in the operation. The
Irish government
The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.
The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The gover ...
was angered over the use of Irish passports, summoned the Israeli ambassador for an explanation and expelled the Israeli diplomat deemed responsible from Dublin, following an investigation. One of the passports was registered to a residence on Pembroke Road, Ballsbridge, on the same road as the Israeli embassy. The house was empty when later searched, but there was suspicion by Irish authorities it had been used as a Mossad
safe house
A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is, in a generic sense, a secret place for sanctuary or suitable to hide people from the law, hostile actors or actions, or from retribution, threats or perceived danger. It may also be a metaphor.
Histori ...
in the past. Mossad is reported to have a working relationship with the Irish military intelligence service and has previously tipped the Irish authorities off about arms shipments from the Middle East to Ireland for use by
dissident republican
Dissident republicans, renegade republicans, anti-Agreement republicans or anti-ceasefire republicans ( ga, poblachtach easaontach) are Irish republicans who do not support the current peace agreements in Northern Ireland. The agreements follo ...
militants, resulting in their interception and arrests.
Italy
The killing of
Wael Zwaiter
Abdel Wael Zwaiter ( ar, وائل زعيتر; 2 January 1934 – 16 October 1972) was a Palestinian translator, assassinated as the first target of Israel's Operation Wrath of God campaign following the 1972 Munich massacre. Israel considered Zwa ...
, thought to be a member of Black September.
In 1986, Mossad used an undercover agent to lure
Mordechai Vanunu
Mordechai Vanunu ( he, מרדכי ואנונו; born 14 October 1952), also known as John Crossman, is an Israeli former nuclear technician and peace activist who, citing his opposition to weapons of mass destruction, revealed details of Isra ...
from the United Kingdom to Italy in a
honey trap
Honey trapping is an investigative practice involving the use of romantic or sexual relationships for interpersonal, political (including state espionage), or monetary purpose. The ''honey pot or trap'' involves making contact with an individua ...
style operation where he was abducted and returned to Israel where he was tried and found guilty of
treason
Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...
The killing of Fathi Shiqaqi. Shiqaqi, a leader of the
Palestinian Islamic Jihad
The Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine ( ar, حركة الجهاد الإسلامي في فلسطين, ''Harakat al-Jihād al-Islāmi fi Filastīn''), known in the West simply as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), is a Palestinian Islamist pa ...
, was shot several times in the head in 1995 in front of the Diplomat Hotel in Sliema,
Malta
Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
Canadian passport
A Canadian passport (french: passeport canadien) is the passport issued to Canadian nationality law, citizens of Canada. It enables the bearer to enter or re-enter Canada freely; travel to and from other countries in accordance with Visa requir ...
s, which angered the Canadian government. Six Mossad agents were arrested, and the incident came to be known as the Lillehammer affair. Israel subsequently paid compensation to Bouchiki's family.
Serbia
Israel provided weapons to the Serbs during the
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...
, possibly due to the pro-Serbian bias of the government of the time, or possibly in exchange for the immigration of the Sarajevo Jewish community to Israel. The Mossad allegedly was responsible for providing Serbian groups with arms.
US State Department
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other na ...
documents discovered by the Iranian students who took over the U.S. Embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979:
In February 1998, five Mossad agents were caught wiretapping the home of a
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's paramil ...
agent in a Bern suburb. Four agents were freed, but the fifth was tried, found guilty, sentenced to one year in prison, and following his release was banned from entering Switzerland for five years.
Soviet Union/Russia
Mossad was involved in outreach to refuseniks in the Soviet Union during the
crackdown
Crackdown may refer to
* ''Crackdown'' (web series)
* ''Crackdown'' (video game series)
** ''Crackdown'' (video game)
** '' Crackdown 2''
** '' Crackdown 3''
* ''Crackdown'' (podcast)
* '' The Crackdown'', a 1983 album
{{dab ...
on Soviet Jews in the period between the 1950s and the 1980s. Mossad helped establish contact with Refuseniks in the USSR, and helped them acquire Jewish religious items, banned by the Soviet government, in addition to passing communications into and out of the USSR. Many rabbinical students from Western countries travelled to the Soviet Union as part of this program in order to establish and maintain contact with refuseniks.
United Kingdom
In 1984 Mossad agents were caught attempting to kidnap Nigerian politician Umaru Dikko from London. On 4 July 1984 customs officials at
Stanstead airport
London Stansted Airport is a tertiary international airport serving London, England, United Kingdom. It is located near Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex, England, northeast of Central London.
London Stansted serves over 160 destinations acro ...
discovered Dikko in a crate about to be flown to Nigeria. Agents Alexander Barak, Felix Abithol and anesthetist Dr Levi-Arie Shapiro were given prison sentences of between ten and fourteen years.
In 1986, a bag containing eight forged British passports was discovered in a telephone booth in
West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
. The passports had been the work of Mossad and were intended for the Israeli Embassy in London for use in covert operations. The British government, furious, demanded that Israel give a promise not forge its passports again, which was obtained.
On 30 September 1986 Mossad agents succeeded in luring
Mordechai Vanunu
Mordechai Vanunu ( he, מרדכי ואנונו; born 14 October 1952), also known as John Crossman, is an Israeli former nuclear technician and peace activist who, citing his opposition to weapons of mass destruction, revealed details of Isra ...
from London to Rome where he was kidnapped back to Israel and tried for treason. Vanunu had been hosted in London by the
Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, wh ...
whilst revealing details of Israel’s nuclear weapons programme.
On 15 June 1988, following the trial and conviction of a Palestinian post-graduate student studying at Hull University, Ismail Sowan, two Mossad agents were expelled from the UK. Sowan was found in possession of a large arms cache and was sentenced to eleven years in prison. During his trial it had been revealed that he had employed by Mossad for ten years. The Mossad agents, Arie Regev and Jacob Barad, were Sowan’s controllers. They had failed to inform MI6 of Sowan’s activities and that they were aware that a Palestinian, Abd al-Rahim Mustapha, believed to be involved in the assassination of Naji al-Ali had entered the country illegally.
The Mossad station in UK remained closed until the 1994 bombing of the Israeli Embassy in London.
Ukraine
In February 2011, a Palestinian engineer, Dirar Abu Seesi, was allegedly pulled off a train by Mossad agents en route to the capital
Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
from
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.diplomatic sanctions on Israel over an incident in which two Australia-based Israelis, Uriel Kelman and Eli Cara, who were allegedly working for Mossad, attempted to fraudulently obtain New Zealand passports by claiming the identity of a severely disabled man. Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom later apologized to New Zealand for their actions. New Zealand cancelled several other passports believed to have been obtained by Israeli agents. Both Kelman and Cara served half of their six-month sentences and, upon release, were deported to Israel. Two others, an Israeli, Ze'ev Barkan, and a New Zealander, David Reznick, are believed to have been the third and fourth men involved in the passport affair but they both managed to leave New Zealand before being apprehended.
In fiction
;Films (including made-for-television movies)
* The films ''
Sword of Gideon
''Sword of Gideon'' is a 1986 Canadian television film about Mossad agents hunting down terrorists associated with the 1972 Munich massacre. It was first shown on the CTV Television Network in Canada as a four-hour miniseries and later on HBO in ...
'' (1986) and ''
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
The Impossible Spy
''The Impossible Spy'' is a 1987 television film based on the true story of an Israeli civilian spy, Eli Cohen, who was recruited into Israel's secret intelligence agency (the Mossad) in the 1960s to become a spy in Damascus. Prior to his capture ...
'' (1987) is a TV movie about the life of top Mossad spy
Eli Cohen
Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen ( he, אֱלִיָּהוּ בֵּן שָׁאוּל כֹּהֵן, ar, إيلياهو بن شاؤول كوهين; 6 December 1924 – 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israel ...
.
* In the film '' Swordfish'' (2001), the lead character Gabriel Shear (played by
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom '' Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (1 ...
Adolf Eichmann
Otto Adolf Eichmann ( ,"Eichmann" '' Jeffrey Archer
Jeffrey Howard Archer, Baron Archer of Weston-super-Mare (born 15 April 1940) is an English novelist, life peer, convicted criminal, and former politician. Before becoming an author, Archer was a Member of Parliament (1969–1974), but did not ...
's novel '' Honour Among Thieves'' (1993), the lead female protagonist is a Mossad agent.
* In book 4 of Mark Greaney's Gray Man series, ''Dead Eye'', Mossad and the CIA partner to capture the world's most feared and lethal rogue former black ops agent Courtland Gentry.
* Daniel Silva's spy novel series is centered on fictional Mossad agent and assassin, Gabriel Allon. The term "Mossad" is never used in the novels, but the protagonist is described as working for Israel's intelligence service (which the characters refer to simply as "the Office").
* John Le Carre's novel ''
The Little Drummer Girl
''The Little Drummer Girl'' is a spy novel by British writer John le Carré, published in 1983. The story follows the manipulations of Martin Kurtz, an Israeli spymaster who intends to kill Khalil – a Palestinian terrorist who is bombing Jewis ...
'' (1983) describes a fictional Mossad operation against Palestinian terrorists.
* Frederick Forsyth's novel ''
The Fist of God
''The Fist of God'' is a 1994 suspense novel by British writer Frederick Forsyth, with a fictitious retelling of the Iraqi Project Babylon and the resulting "supergun".
Featuring a story set during the Persian Gulf War, the novel details an Al ...
'' describes the inner workings of various Mossad divisions.
;Television
(Alphabetical by show)
*
Tehran
Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...
(2020–present) is a spy thriller television series about a Mossad agent working undercover in Iran.
* In the TV series '' The Blacklist'' (2013–present), Mossad agent
Samar Navabi
'' The Blacklist'' is an American crime drama television series that premiered on NBC on September 23, 2013. Raymond "Red" Reddington (James Spader), a former government agent turned high-profile criminal, who had eluded capture for decades, v ...
(played by Mozhan Marnò) is one of the side characters.
* In the TV series '' Covert Affairs'' (2010–2015), Mossad agent Eyal Lavin is a recurring character.
* Since the ''
NCIS NCIS or N.C.I.S. may refer to:
Law enforcement
* National Criminal Intelligence Service, the predecessor to the Serious Organised Crime Agency of the United Kingdom
* Naval Criminal Investigative Service, a United States law enforcement and intelli ...
'' season 3 episode " Kill Ari (Part 1)" (2005), Mossad has played an instrumental part. Mossad's presence includes one of the main characters, Agent Ziva David, who is a former Mossad Agent. She originally filled the position of Mossad liaison to NCIS, until the end of
season 7
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and ...
, when she became a full-time NCIS agent. Her father, Eli David, was the director of Mossad, until the
season 10
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
episode " Shabbat Shalom", when he was killed. Many other characters have been included in the show from Mossad, including
Michael Rivkin
'' NCIS'' is an American police procedural television series, revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes involving the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The series was ...
and Ari Haswari. Some episodes of the show have taken place in Israel.
* '' The Spy'' (2019) is a web television miniseries on the life of top Mossad spy
Eli Cohen
Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen ( he, אֱלִיָּהוּ בֵּן שָׁאוּל כֹּהֵן, ar, إيلياهو بن شاؤول كوهين; 6 December 1924 – 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israel ...
The Spy Machine
''The Spy Machine'' is a UK documentary special about the work of the Mossad, written and narrated by Gordon Thomas.
It was made by Open Media and Israfilm and first broadcast by Channel 4 in May 1998. The producer/director was Per-Eric Ha ...
Yamam
The Yamam ( he, ימ"מ, an acronym for ''Centralized Special Unit'' , ''Yeḥida Merkazit Meyuḥedet''), also called in Hebrew and Israel's National Counter Terror Unit (I.N.C.T.U.) in English, is Israel's national counter-terrorism uni ...
, Israel's elite Border Police SWAT Unit
Notes
References
Further reading
* Bar-Zohar, Michael and Mishal, Nissim. ''Mossad: The Great Operations of Israel's Secret Service''. The Robson Press, 2012. .
* Ben-Menashe, Ari. ''Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network''. New York: Sheridan Square Press, 1992. . .
* Black, Ian and Benny Morris. '' Israel's Secret Wars: A History of Israel's Intelligence Services''. New York: Grove Weidenfeld, 1991. . .
*
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...
. ''Israel: Foreign Intelligence and Security Services: A Survey.'' Washington, D.C., 1979. (Included in ''Documents from the US Espionage Den''. Tehran: Center for the Publication of the US Espionage Den's Documents, 1982.)
* Jonas, George. ''
Vengeance
Vengeance may refer to:
*Vengeance (concept) or revenge, a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance
Film
* ''Vengeance'' (1930 film), action adventure film directed by Archie Mayo
* ''Vengeance'' (1937 film) or ''W ...
''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984. . .
* Lapid, Ephraim and Amos Gilboa, ''Israel's Silent Defender: An Inside Look at Sixty Years of Israeli Intelligence'' (2012)
* Libel, Tamir. "Looking for meaning: lessons from Mossad’s failed adaptation to the post-Cold War era, 1991–2013." ''Journal of Intelligence History'' 14.2 (2015): 83–95 abstract * Ostrovsky, Victor; Hoy, Claire (1991). '' By Way of Deception: A Devastating Insider's Portrait of the Mossad''. Toronto: General Paperbacks. .
* Raviv, Dan and Melman, Yossi. ''Spies Against Armageddon: Inside Israel's Secret Wars''. Sea Cliff: Levant Books, 2012. .