The dismissals in the Mossad are another attempt to escape responsibility | Commentary

The global preoccupation with the agreement being formed to open the Strait of Hormuz highlights the magnitude of the failure of Operation "Lion's Roar". Its stated goals — toppling the regime in Iran, denying its nuclear capability, and solving the problem of missiles and proxy organizations — failed. Instead, the issue of the strait became a powerful weapon that Iran uses to extort far-reaching concessions from the United States.

The strait, which was open on the eve of the war for free navigation, is now subject to the whims of Tehran. From a position of clear inferiority — military, political, and economic — Iran has managed to execute an impressive strategic reversal.

The defense agreement signed between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan shows how great the fear of Iran is even among its strongest neighbors. Their attempt to set up a Sunni wall against the growing Shiite power only highlights the isolation of Israel, whose deterrence has significantly dimmed in the face of the failure to achieve its goals.

The Mossad does not operate in a vacuum

Over the weekend, it was reported that Mossad chief Roman Gofman dismissed the head of the Intelligence Directorate and the head of the Iran Division. Although the dismissal was marketed to the media as a move made by agreement, it is sweating with effort to mark those responsible for the failure — and to distance it from those who are truly responsible.

This matter requires an explanation. The Mossad has a boss, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for whom Iran is his "baby." Netanyahu supported the operation and was intensively involved in it: he held dozens of discussions in which he went into minute details. When he finally approved the operation, he knew very well what he was approving. He did so despite the fierce opposition of the IDF and letters from the head of Aman, which determined that the chances of the operation succeeding were slim, and its failure could cause great damage.

Despite this, Netanyahu decided to approve the operation. He even went to Washington and convinced President Donald Trump to support the move, contrary to the opinion of most of the security leadership. In real-time, Trump refrained from giving the green light to one of the central components of the operation — the raid of Kurdish forces into Iran. The one who was supposed to get the approval from him, and failed, was Netanyahu.

Gofman served during that period as Netanyahu's military secretary and as his long arm in supervising the Mossad. Insiders say that he also supported the plan with great enthusiasm in the early discussions. Its failure is also his direct failure, following Netanyahu's failure. The dismissal of senior officials now seems to be a clumsy attempt to distance the responsibility from him and from those who appointed him to the position.

K. and Y., who were dismissed, were far from completing their roles. Such a dismissal of senior officials equivalent to major generals is unprecedented. The claim in the Mossad that it is the right of the head of the organization to shape his headquarters is infuriating. Not only because it is not a private organization, but because the failures of recent years — from October 7 to "Lion's Roar" — emphasize the need for intellectual pluralism.

And yet there is one good thing in this dismissal. The Mossad officially admits that Israel failed to achieve its goals in the last war. This is important to push aside the lies that the public was fed. Now it only remains to establish the responsibility for the failure, which reaches the same place where it has been parked since October 7, and is directly related to the information about the influence operation conducted for Qatar in the Prime Minister's Office. The fact that Netanyahu did not distance himself from the affair shows that he has learned nothing. The next strategic failure is already written on the wall: the price will be paid, as usual, by others.