Latest news with #ShinBet
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
IDF, Shin Bet kill Hamas's Al Mawasi battalion commander, responsible for death of 21 soldiers
He was killed by military aircraft during a joint operation by the IDF and Shin Bet. The IDF on Friday killed the terrorist Khalil Abd al-Nasser Muhammad Khatib, who commanded Hamas's Al Mawasi battalion, and was responsible for the deaths of 21 soldiers in January 2024, the military said on Sunday. He was killed by military aircraft during a joint operation by the IDF and Shin Bet. Khatib commanded terrorists to launch anti-tank missiles at buildings housing IDF soldiers and at a tank crew providing cover for soldiers in the al-Mawasi area on January 22, 2024. The strike in the Gaza Strip that killed Khalil Abd al-Nasser Muhammad Khatib, a cell commander in Hamas' Al Mawasi battalion and responsible for the deaths of 21 soldiers (credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) The incident occurred around 4:00 p.m. in Maghazi in central Gaza, only 600 meters from the border fence close to Kissufim. The buildings were laden with stored explosives, and the grenades set them off causing their total collapse. Khatib continued to be involved in numerous terror attacks against IDF troops throughout the war after the incident in January 2024, the IDF said. The IDF forces who were harmed were mostly reservists from Unit 8208 assigned to clear certain areas of dangerous items. Yonah Jeremy Bob and Gadi Zaig contributed to this report.
Times of Oman
a day ago
- General
- Times of Oman
Israel claims to have killed Hamas chief Muhammad Sinwar in May 13 strike
Tel Aviv: The Israel Defence Forces claimed to have killed the chief of Hamas, Muhammad Sinwar, in May 13 strike on the grounds of the European Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli defense officials confirmed on late Saturday night, as per The Times of Israel. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a similar announcement earlier. In a post on X, the IDF said, "We eliminated the Head of Hamas, again. He happens to be a Sinwar too." In a joint statement, the Israel Defence Forces and Shin Bet security agency said they had confirmed that the May 13 strike on the grounds of the European Hospital in Khan Younis had killed Sinwar along with Muhammad Shabana, commander of the terror group's Rafah Brigade, and Mahdi Quara, commander of the South Khan Younis Battalion, as per The Times of Israel. "The terrorists were eliminated while operating in an underground command and control center under the European Hospital in Khan Younis, deliberately endangering the civilian population in and around the hospital," the joint statement said. Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal quoted Hamas and Arab officials as saying that the meeting of the top Hamas figures was convened to discuss their approach to talks on a ceasefire and hostage release deal, among other matters. Presented with this opportunity, the Israeli Air Force immediately began preparing for a strike, though top officers expected it would likely be called off due to fears of harming hostages, which Sinwar reportedly kept close to him. When solid intelligence arrived that no hostages were present near the senior commanders, the IAF was given the green light, jets were scrambled, and the bombing went ahead. Earlier on Saturday, the IDF said it killed Mohammad Ali Jamoul, the Shaqif region commander of Hezbollah's rocket array in the area of Deir al-Zahrani in southern Lebanon. Muhammed Sinwar, a senior Hamas military commander, was the younger brother of the former Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar. The younger Sinwar had been at the top of Israel's most wanted list. After Yahya Sinwar was killed in combat in October 2024, Muhammad Sinwar became the de facto leader of the terror group in the Gaza Strip, as per The Times of Israel.
Jordan News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Jordan News
Netanyahu will turn Israel into a failed state. - Jordan News
In a historical precedent for an entity that considers itself a Democratic state, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu encroached on the judiciary, to which everyone in Israel complies, when he initiated the appointment of the new head of the Shin Bet, former Major General David Zinni, by his decision, disregarding judicial decisions, despite the opposition and criticism of party leaders and the outbreak of internal demonstrations, to increase the escalation children and women, after the recognition of both Spain, Ireland and Norway, in addition to boycotting products for Israeli settlers. اضافة اعلان Netanyahu's procrastination to stop the war on Gaza and the prisoner exchange has created a crisis inside Israel in addition to the previous crisis, as well as embarrassed his largest partner, the United States, so that Israel has become a threat to US interests in the region, especially economic ones. All this has led to an increase in the isolation of Israel regionally and internationally, and an article was published a year ago in under the title :"Israel is increasing its isolation regionally and internationally" and today what I mentioned in my previous article is being realized. Prime Minister Netanyahu's act of circumventing the judiciary is only a prelude to intervening in the judiciary and a preemptive step to drop all pending cases against him, and to convince the public opinion at home that Israel's battle will not end in eliminating the resistance, so that he can control all the judicial and security joints of the entity, because he wants to remain in government and secure his political future, and these measures all contradict Israeli strategies since the occupation of Palestine in 1948, and will affect the entity in the near future, not to mention the bad economic situation that Israel has reached from this war, and opening fronts that do not achieve military goals, such as the Houthi front. The political horizon that Netanyahu and his far-right party are evading will eventually lead to weakening Israel, creating more divisions at home, neutralizing the judiciary, a sharp deterioration in the economy and isolating Israel regionally and internationally to become a failed state, in addition to destabilizing the region to shuffle the cards again and increase the difficulties for his Western allies, has getting rid of Netanyahu become a demand. GM of Jobkins Centre for Strategic Studies. Expert, strategic, and economic analyst. Engineer Mohannad Abbas Haddadin.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Iran's spy game: How the Islamic Republic convinces Israelis to betray their homeland
INTERNAL SECURITY AFFAIRS: For a fistful of dollars, Israelis are ready to assist Iran in its war against Israel. Roy Mizrahi and Almog Atias, both 24 and childhood friends, are residents of Nesher, near Haifa. Mizrahi was deep in debt due to a gambling addiction, and Atias was not far behind. Then an opportunity arose that offered to them a way out of their financial mess. A member of an online swingers group, Mizrahi made the acquaintance of an anonymous member who asked him to do a bunch of seemingly unrelated and harmless tasks, and in return he was paid handsomely. First he was told to photograph the area around his home and then document a car dealership's sales board. He was then asked to burn a note with a message against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Then, the missions became more sinister, and at some point, according to police investigators, Mizrahi became very aware that the people calling the shots were Iranian, and he was doing their beckoning. Next, he transferred a bag buried in the ground he believed to contain a bomb from one location to another. Then, it was time for the main mission. Together with Atias, who was also recruited by the anonymous online member, a surveillance camera was purchased and the two rented a hotel room in Tel Aviv, before traveling to Kfar Ahim, the southern Israel home of Defense Minister Israel Katz. They were ordered to install a camera facing the access road to Katz's home, but the mission was aborted due to the presence of security guards. Defense officials told the court that the surveillance was part of a larger plan to assassinate the defense minister. MIZRAHI AND Atias are not an abberation. It seems that every couple of weeks a new story emerges about the recruitment of Israelis by Iranian intelligence. According to a Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) report issued in January, the year 2024 saw a 400% increase in espionage cases compared to the previous year. Supt. Maor Goren, head of the security division at the Israel Police's Lahav 433 – The National Crime Unit, told KAN Reshet Bet that the arrest of Mizrahi and Atias marked the 20th case his unit and the Shin Bet have handled over the past year involving Israelis suspected of spying for Iran. There is no doubt that Tehran has used the period since the start of the Israel-Hamas War to step up its efforts to lure Israelis into spying for the regime. Twenty espionage cases have so far come to public light, and 30 indictments have been filed. Not all the stories are similar, but some clear patterns emerge. Those recruited are invariably in financial difficulty and are seeking a quick fix to settle debts. Many are new immigrants, often lacking the patriotic attachment to the state most veteran Israelis have. 'Most of those recruited are useless and are on the margins of Israeli society,' explained Yossi Melman, an espionage expert and coauthor of Spies Against Armageddon. 'But what's worrying is that a country dedicated to Israel's destruction has managed to penetrate Israeli society.' And Melman has an explanation as to why the Iranians are succeeding. 'It's connected to the disintegration of Israeli society that has been accelerating over recent years. There is no longer cohesion and solidarity,' he explained. 'Today it's each for their own, and even the government only cares about its own survival. People feel that if officials can work for Qatar, why can't they work for Iran?' Goren noted, however, that for every individual who accepts the offer, others – also contacted by Iranian operatives – cut off communication and report the approach to the police. The Iranian recruitment method is relatively simple, lacking sophistication, and without a huge financial outlay or years of planning, involving sleeper cells or similar deep penetration methods. Social media phishing is the preferred recruitment method, and it only takes a few gullible Israelis to take the bait. The Iranians are targeting haredim, new immigrants, people with a criminal background, and ordinary citizens, often going after those with financial difficulties motivated by the prospect of making some quick money. The targeting of new immigrants – a number of those arrested have been from the former Soviet Union – also may have an unfortunate ripple effect beyond a threat to Israeli security: fostering suspicion and stigmatizing specific demographics among the public. Furthermore, Iran has been able to cast a wider net, largely thanks to social media, which they leverage to recruit people. The digital approach to recruitment allows Iran to reach segments of the population that they would not have been able to access before the advent of platforms like Telegram. You may have unwittingly come across such recruitment attempts yourself. Iranian intelligence has reached out to Israelis on various platforms, including WhatsApp, Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Telegram, and Instagram, offering generous payments for simple tasks such as taking a photo of a particular individual or site, or spraying graffiti. Sometimes the ad will seek a private investigator to obtain information on Israeli officials. There is initially no mention of Iran, and most Israelis who were recruited claimed that, initially at least, they had no idea they were working for Tehran. Other phishing campaigns posted surveys asking Israelis to enter their personal information. The Shin Bet has an impressive track record in thwarting Iran's espionage efforts, and so far, as far as we know, there has been no serious damage caused to Israel's security. However, the espionage effort is ongoing, and it is entirely possible that individuals working for Tehran have still not been exposed. Criticism has been voiced over lenient sentencing by the courts for the individuals who are enticed by Iranian intelligence. The relatively mild punishments handed down by the courts – usually a few years in prison – are unlikely to deter people who are tempted by Iran's generous cash payments. And for Iran, the capture of individuals or a cell operating on its behalf has no consequences at all. The spymasters in Tehran merely wait patiently until the next victim answers their social media messages. Moshe Attias, an 18-year-old resident of Yavne, received the following message. 'Thank you for contacting Iranian intelligence. To speak with our experts, send a message to the Telegram user below.' Attias received around $1,800 via a digital wallet to document the ward in the Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba where former prime minister Naftali Bennett was staying when hospitalized for a week in April. Attias, posing as a relative of Bennett, also described to his Iranian handlers the security arrangements in place in the hospital for the former prime minister. Last August, Israeli police arrested 73-year-old Moti Maman, from Ashkelon, for allegedly plotting to assassinate Netanyahu, then-defense minister Yoav Gallant, and Shin Bet head Ronen Bar. Maman was smuggled into Iran twice to meet with his Iranian handlers. In Iran, he allegedly requested an advance payment of $1 million, according to the indictment against him. 'Getting so close to Bennett is an achievement for the Iranians, and it shows they are still trying,' explained Melman. 'But still, their efforts pale into insignificance when compared to Israeli intelligence penetration of Iran. Maman told his handlers there was no way he could get access to top-level officials and suggested instead the mayors of Acre or Nahariya.' In March a resident of Beersheba was arrested on suspicion of offering to sell an Iranian agent information on the Negev Nuclear Research Center. Last year a couple were recruited by an Iranian intelligence network that specifically focuses on Jewish immigrants to Israel from the Caucasus region, after being initially approached by an Israeli national with Azerbaijani origins. According to the indictment the couple received $600 per day for gathering information on potential targets, including surveillance of Mossad headquarters. A seven-member Haifa cell, indicted last year, allegedly photographed dozens of military bases, Iron Dome batteries and other strategic sites across Israel, receiving between $500 and $1,200 per task. According to the indictment, one of their surveillance targets was the Nevatim Air Force Base, which was later hit in an Iranian missile strike. Not all those recruited are Jewish. Last October seven Palestinians from east Jerusalem were arrested after being recruited by Tehran. The cell plotted to assassinate an Israeli nuclear scientist and the mayor of a major city. To date, the Iranian espionage efforts don't appear to have resulted in a spectacular success, and through a combination of digital surveillance and undercover operations the Shin Bet has succeeded in thwarting Iranian efforts. No senior Israeli figures have been assassinated. The surveillance efforts may have provided Tehran with real-time intelligence on more than one occasion but do not amount to a game changer. 'But we don't know what we don't know, and what's really worrying is that Israelis are ready to betray their homeland for a fistful of dollars,' said Melman. Herb Keinon contributed to this report.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
A-G working to 'bring about downfall' of Israeli government, says Sa'ar
Sa'ar claimed that a 'senior' official in the justice ministry had told him that Baharav-Miara had decided to 'go all the way' in her opposition to the government. Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara is working 'persistently and openly' to 'paralyze the government's executive capabilities and bring about its downfall,' Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on Tuesday. Sa'ar's comments came in response to an opinion issued by the attorney-general on Monday, according to which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is legally barred from appointing a new Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) head due to a conflict of interests. Netanyahu said on Thursday that he had decided to appoint Maj.-Gen. David Zini to the position, despite a High Court ruling a day earlier that the 'Qatargate' investigation put him in a conflict of interest with regards to firing the outgoing Shin Bet chief, Ronen Bar. Sa'ar's accusations were noteworthy, as he was responsible for Baharav-Miara's appointment to the position in his position as Justice Minister in the previous government. Sa'ar claimed that a 'senior' official in the Justice Ministry had told him that Baharav-Miara had decided to 'go all the way' in her opposition to the government. 'The reasoning presented by Baharav-Miara and [Deputy Attorney-General Gil] Limon is a supposed 'conflict of interests' involving the prime minister due to the Qatargate affair, despite the fact that the prime minister is not a suspect in the case,' Sa'ar wrote on X/Twitter. 'The very claim of a conflict of interests due to an investigation into people close to the prime minister is, in itself, far-reaching. In any case, any novice legal scholar knows that this alleged conflict of interest could have been 'neutralized' through much more proportionate measures instead of completely disqualifying the prime minister's involvement 'in any way' in the appointment of the head of the security agency he is legally mandated to oversee,' the foreign minister continued. 'For example, the attorney-general could have ruled that the new Shin Bet chief would not be involved in the investigation at all. 'The proposal to transfer the appointment authority to another minister makes a mockery of the explicit provisions of the law, which Baharav-Miara and Limon have ignored,' Sa'ar continued. In response to the A-G's opinion that it was 'doubtful' whether Zini could be appointed to the position, Sa'ar wrote, 'What remains of the legal provisions and the prime minister's responsibility in a key security domain when fundamental powers are stripped from him so casually by those who are supposed to provide him with legal counsel?" 'The Knesset was elected by the people. The government serves by virtue of the Knesset's confidence. The continued weakening of these institutions turns Israel into a caricature of a democratic regime. An attorney-general who persistently and openly works to paralyze the government's executive capabilities and bring about its downfall does not function as a legal adviser. By now, she is far more deserving of another distinguished title for her actual role: Leader of the Opposition.' The foreign minister's comments came alongside those of other ministers, some of whom, including Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi and Development of the Negev and Galilee Minister Yitzhak Wasserlauf, called on Netanyahu to ignore the High Court if it struck down Zini's appointment.
