As the Isreal-Hamas war intensifies, the whole world is asking one question, why Mossad, the Israeli spy agency, among the best in the world did not even get a hint about the invasion of Hamas? The Israeli government appeared to be caught off guard by the attack, suggesting a significant intelligence failure.
Mossad, the national intelligence agency of Israel is a highly sophisticated spy organization that does not hesitate to target Israel's enemies anywhere in the world. The official name is the Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations. (In Hebrew Mossad Merkazi le-Modiin ule-Tafkidim Meyuhadim - Mossad means institute ).
Besides the Mossad, Israel has two other intelligence agencies - AMAN (military intelligence) and Shin Bet (internal security). The Director is an officer of the rank of Major General in the Army. The current director is David Barnea.
The Mossad has indiscriminately dealt with anti-Israel forces and Nazi criminals in foreign countries. Countless operations were carried out in Europe, West Asia and Africa, including the assassination of Palestinian leaders. Mossad was established as a continuation of the intelligence wing of the Haganah, the Jewish army during the British occupation of Palestine. Reuven Shiloah was the first director. Mossad was developed into a professional spy organization by Isser Harel, who was its director for 11 years from 1952.
Structure of the Mossad
Tzomet : Espionage abroad. Agents are known as Katsas for this. Operation as and without diplomatic agents.
Caesarea: Agents called Kidon who kill opponents. They have two years of training.
Keshet: Electronic surveillance, phone tapping, raiding enemy bases.
Metsada: Militants who commit assassinations and coups.
A group of loyal Jewish civilians who help without pay.
The Mossad became world famous in 1960 when Adolf Eichmann, one of the masterminds of the Nazi massacre of 6 million Jews, was kidnapped from Argentina. A time when Argentina rejected requests to extradite Nazi criminals. Israel did not go begging. Prime Minister Ben Gurion assigned an eight-man Mossad team to capture Eichmann, who had escaped Allied captivity and settled in Argentina.
In Argentina, Eichmann was observed for several weeks at his residence. On May 11, 1960, Eichmann got off the bus and was rolled up by Mossad agents, wrapped in wool and taken to a secret hideout. He was under their custody for nine days and on the 10th day, the Mossad team doctor drugged him into a semi-conscious state. He was dressed in a flight attendant's uniform and put on a plane to Israel. After being tried in an Israeli court, he was hanged to death. This Mossad operation, which surprised even the CIA, was a violation of Argentina's sovereignty.
The Palestinian terrorists who massacred eleven Israeli athletes in the Munich Olympic Village in 1972 were killed in a 16-year operation in many parts of the world. For this, a five-member team of Mossad appointed by Prime Minister Golda Meir went to Rome, Paris, Cyprus, Beirut and London. The mastermind of the massacre, Ali Hassan Salameh, was killed in the sixth attempt.
Steven Spielberg's movie Munich is based on those events. There have been other films and television series about the Mossad. Eli Cohen was a notorious agent who infiltrated the highest levels of the Syrian regime. Realizing that he was a Mossad agent, the Syrian government shot him dead.
Indian connection
Since the time of Indira Gandhi, India's spy agency RAW and Mossad have had a close relationship. When RAW was founded in 1968, the director, Rameshwar Nath Kao was suggested by Indira Gandhi to liaise with the Mossad. It was an antidote to Pakistan-China military ties.
In the early 1990s, Pakistan thought that the Israeli tourists who came to Kashmir were Israeli agents. An Israeli tourist was killed and another was kidnapped. Mossad intervened to free him. This relationship continued during Rajiv Gandhi's tenure. There have also been reports that Mossad agents were assigned to provide extra security to Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he went to the G20 summit in Turkey in 2015.