Ex-security chiefs warn Gaza war threatens Israel's future
In a video released online, the group condemned the offensive as a strategic and moral failure, saying it had achieved little while inflicting deep damage on Israel's standing and identity.
'This war stopped being a just war. This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' said Ami Ayalon, former Shin Bet head.
Tamir Pardo, who once led Mossad, warned, 'We are on the precipice of defeat. No matter how good the army is, a war with no political goal is a guarantee of defeat.'
Amos Malka, a former military intelligence commander, argued that Israel passed the point of decisive action over a year ago. 'We could have ended the war with a sufficient operational achievement,' he said.
Instead, ex-Shin Bet director Nadav Argaman added, 'We are now mostly offsetting losses.'
The remarks mark one of the most high-profile internal rebukes of the war effort, coming from the very figures once responsible for Israel's security doctrine.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Middle East Eye
16 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
Ex-security chiefs warn Gaza war threatens Israel's future
At least 18 former leaders of Israel's intelligence and security apparatus, including ex-chiefs of Mossad, Shin Bet, the military and police, have jointly urged the government to halt its war on Gaza. In a video released online, the group condemned the offensive as a strategic and moral failure, saying it had achieved little while inflicting deep damage on Israel's standing and identity. 'This war stopped being a just war. This is leading the state of Israel to the loss of its security and its identity,' said Ami Ayalon, former Shin Bet head. Tamir Pardo, who once led Mossad, warned, 'We are on the precipice of defeat. No matter how good the army is, a war with no political goal is a guarantee of defeat.' Amos Malka, a former military intelligence commander, argued that Israel passed the point of decisive action over a year ago. 'We could have ended the war with a sufficient operational achievement,' he said. Instead, ex-Shin Bet director Nadav Argaman added, 'We are now mostly offsetting losses.' The remarks mark one of the most high-profile internal rebukes of the war effort, coming from the very figures once responsible for Israel's security doctrine.
The National
18 hours ago
- The National
Hundreds of former Israeli security officials urge Donald Trump to help end Gaza war
Hundreds of retired Israeli security officials, including former heads of intelligence agencies, have urged US President Donald Trump to pressure their own government to end the war in Gaza. 'It is our professional judgment that Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel,' the former officials wrote in an open letter, shared with the media on Monday. 'At first this war was a just war, a defensive war, but when we achieved all military objectives, this war ceased to be a just war,' said Ami Ayalon, former director of the Shin Bet security service. The war, nearing its 23rd month, 'is leading the state of Israel to lose its security and identity', Mr Ayalon warned in a video released to accompany the letter. Signed by 550 people, including former chiefs of Shin Bet and the Mossad spy agency, the letter called on Mr Trump to 'steer' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu towards a ceasefire. Israel launched its war on Gaza in response to the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities, in which militants killed about 1,200 people and abducted about 240. The Israeli army has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians − mostly children and women − and caused starvation by using aid as a weapon. In recent weeks, Israel has come under increasing international pressure to agree to a ceasefire that could see the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza released and UN agencies distribute humanitarian aid. But some in Israel, including ministers in Mr Netanyahu's coalition government, are instead pushing for Israeli troops to push on and for Gaza to be occupied in whole or in part. Three former Mossad leaders signed the letter. Other signatories include five former leaders of Shin Bet and three former military chiefs of staff. The letter argued that the Israeli army 'has long accomplished the two objectives that could be achieved by force: dismantling Hamas's military formations and governance'. 'The third, and most important, can only be achieved through a deal: bringing all the hostages home,' it added. 'Chasing remaining senior Hamas operatives can be done later,' the letter said. In the letter, the former officials tell Mr Trump that he has credibility with the majority of Israelis and can put pressure on Mr Netanyahu to end the war and return the hostages. After a ceasefire, the signatories argue, Mr Trump could force a regional coalition to support a reformed Palestinian Authority to take charge of Gaza as an alternative to Hamas rule.
Middle East Eye
19 hours ago
- Middle East Eye
'Eli Cohens inside Iran': How Israel's war exposed deep infiltration and intelligence gaps
When Israel launched a surprise 12-day assault on Iran in June, Tehran and the world were caught off guard. Few anticipated such a move, particularly while Iran was engaged in sensitive nuclear negotiations with the United States. Sources told Middle East Eye that a handful of countries had warned Iranian authorities about suspicious Israeli movements. Yet despite heightened alert levels, Tehran was ultimately blindsided when the attack materialised. The nature of the attack and the ease with which it was executed sent shockwaves through Iran's political and security establishment. Behind the scenes, covert Mossad agents, paid informants, and a network of operatives - many allegedly embedded among Afghan migrants - are believed to have facilitated the strikes. An Iranian source in the conservatives' camp told MEE that Israel had long stationed agents inside Iran, observing the movements of officials. The source added that a series of cyber intrusions into Iranian banks and government institutions may have compromised personal data - including phone numbers and addresses of high-level figures and their families - paving the way for deeper penetration. "There have been some Eli Cohens inside the Islamic Republic too," the source remarked, referencing the infamous Israeli spy executed in Syria. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The Cohens In 2021, former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad publicly revealed that the head of the Israeli desk at Iran's Ministry of Intelligence had, in fact, been a Mossad agent - and was later arrested. 'How could the top official responsible for tracking Israeli spies turn out to be one himself?' Ahmadinejad asked at the time. 'Is it even conceivable that a single person was solely running Israeli operations inside Iran, without any oversight or team?' Just four days into the war, on 17 June, Israel killed Iran's highest-ranking military officer, Ali Shadmani, who was leading the Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters - effectively the country's war command centre. Iranians backed the state against Israel. Will it now reward them? Read More » Shadmani's daughter told Iranian media: 'My father was martyred in a direct confrontation with the Zionist regime.' 'Many assume he died in a random air strike, but he was assassinated in a targeted operation.' She added that after his death, Hebrew-language media celebrated the killing of the Islamic Republic's 'war commander' and 'closest military figure to the Supreme Leader.' Further revelations came from Fayaz Zahed, a member of the Government Media Council, during a televised interview. Zahed cited three separate incidents to highlight what he described as deep Israeli infiltration into Iran's security establishment. In the first, he said IRGC commander Hossein Salami warned the head of Iran's state broadcaster, Peyman Jebelli, at 1:30 am on 13 June, the first day of the war, that Israel was planning an attack that night. Salami was killed in an Israeli strike just 90 minutes later, suggesting that senior Iranian officials may have been aware of the impending attack but were unable - or failed - to prevent it. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi mourns next to the coffin of IRGC commander Hossein Salami, during a state funeral procession at Enghelab (Revolution) Square in Tehran on 28 June 2025 (AFP) In another case, Zahed questioned who had directed IRGC intelligence chief Mohammad Kazemi to the building that was struck by Israel two days later, implying that Mossad agents had deliberately led him into the trap. Zahed also referred to a third incident, in which nine Revolutionary Guard generals were reportedly gathered at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He said Israel appeared to have known about the meeting in advance and waited until a tenth general arrived before launching the strike. 'The claim that nine people were gathered in a meeting at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and that the operation began only after one person's delayed arrival, is no trivial matter,' he said. 'The Ministry of Intelligence and IRGC intelligence must conduct a serious and thorough investigation. Without addressing the root of the problem, there's no guarantee it won't happen again. The culprits may still be in place, ready to finish what they started.' After ceasefire, Iran is preparing for the long war with Israel Read More » A key vulnerability, according to insiders, has been the influx of undocumented Afghan migrants into Iran. 'Afghans in Iran are not Israeli spies,' one source in government said, 'but the large number of undocumented individuals who crossed illegally, particularly after the Taliban took power, created a major opportunity for Israeli intelligence.' Former president Ebrahim Raisi's decision to open Iran's borders at the time is now being viewed in retrospect as a major security miscalculation. The source added that some Afghan migrants were unknowingly paid by Israeli operatives to assemble parts later used in drone attacks from within Iranian territory. 'They didn't know who they were working for - they were just following instructions,' he said. Infiltration from within One former security official described to MEE how Israel began penetrating Iran's intelligence infrastructure nearly two decades ago by exploiting 'ideological vulnerabilities' within the system. He pointed to the election of Ahmadinejad in 2005 as a turning point. 'That period saw a rupture in the intelligence apparatus. Many of the seasoned experts who had gained experience during the 1980s were pushed aside. A new generation - lacking field experience - took over. That significantly weakened us,' he said. He added that the early 2000s also saw the expansion of Israeli intelligence bases in neighbouring countries. Following the 2009 Green Movement protests - labelled 'sedition' by hardliners - many individuals advanced rapidly through the security ranks by demonstrating loyalty to the supreme leader and hostility toward the protests. 'That environment likely allowed foreign assets to rise through the system unnoticed,' the source said. He also criticised the ideological shift in Iran's security focus: 'The more ideological the system became, the more it prioritised cracking down on unveiled women and dissidents instead of foreign spies.' The source noted that, "The emergence of overlapping and competing security bodies further fragmented the intelligence landscape, leading to internal confusion and jurisdictional conflicts." Fallout and suspicion In the weeks following the war, the Ministry of Intelligence issued a statement declaring that it had thwarted assassination plots against 23 senior officials and arrested 20 Mossad agents. Meanwhile, one name has surfaced in the public's mind: Ali Shamkhani, the former head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council and an adviser to the supreme leader, who was initially thought to have been killed in an Israeli strike. He later appeared on state television unharmed, claiming he had been trapped under rubble for hours - a statement that fuelled rumours and suspicion. 'The more ideological the system became, the more it prioritised cracking down on unveiled women and dissidents instead of foreign spies' - Former security official 'I looked closely at his face on TV,' said former MP Gholamali Jafarzadeh Imenabadi. 'There was no sign that he'd been trapped under rubble for three hours.' MP Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani further fuelled speculation, saying: 'There are serious ambiguities about Mr. Shamkhani's case. Some claim his son warned him to leave the building before the attack even began.' Notably, two of Shamkhani's aides have been arrested in the past decade on charges of spying for Israel. As the dust settles from Israel's most controversial operation in years, Iran's intelligence and political leaders face growing pressure to account for what many now believe was a deep and long-running infiltration - one that may not yet be over.
