Mossad Director David Barnea said on Sunday that the agency and other intelligence bodies thwarted 27 Iranian terror plots so far this year against Israelis – on almost every continent.
Speaking at Reichman University’s International Counter-Terrorism Conference, he hinted that he and his allies had a hand in blocking Russian-Iranian arms deals, which could have led to Iran getting more advanced weapons.
He said: “The first factor feeding Iran’s over-inflated ego is the assistance it has been giving Russia through the sale of UAVs. We know that the Iranians were planning to sell Russia short-range and long-range missiles too, but this deal has been interdicted.
“I have a feeling that more deals will be interdicted soon. We are concerned that the Russians will meet Iran’s demands to supply it with weapons and raw materials that will put Israel at risk,” he added in a clear hint to the nuclear arena.
Israel is ready to “take a price from the highest officials in the heart of Iran” if necessary, to defend Israel from Iran’s attacks and threats,” he said.
Barnea explained that proxies are Iran’s way to hide its terror face, but Iran is practically behind everything: terror acts, logistics, money, and support – all under orders from the very top.
Barnea presented videos from the capture and interrogation by Mossad agents of Iranian terror actors in Tanzania and Cyprus, two countries out of a list in which terror agents were caught which also included Georgia, Greece, and Germany.
He also named Yousef Shahbazi Abbasalilo as an Iranian operative in Cyprus, and Hamidreza Abraheh as an Iranian operative in Tanzania.
The danger of a terror state becoming a nuclear state
The world needs to understand the danger of a terror state which also becomes a nuclear state, he warned, adding that “Iran will never get a nuclear weapon.”
He noted that “next month, the UN weapons embargo expires,” from the 2015 JCPOA, something Iran will use to gain cheaper access to weapons.
To that, he said: “We will not let Iran remain at its current nuclear levels. Even if there is full return to the nuclear deal, this will not undo Iran’s new nuclear knowledge. Everything is Iran’s cynical move to get money back without giving up its nuclear progress.”
The spy chief also blasted the US deal with Iran, allowing the return of billions of dollars which had been frozen as part of nuclear sanctions, to secure the release of five American hostages. Iran still has not answered IAEA surveillance demands or answered probe questions into Tehran’s illicit nuclear violations, he said.
“I can’t show our methods in a video, but you know we are not sitting passively” about Iran’s nuclear weapons development, he said, adding that Iran’s deal with the Saudis was extremely temporary, and that eventually the two would return to their traditional adversarial relationship.
Comments are closed.