Sagiv Asulin, a former senior Mossad official and intelligence analyst, responded yesterday to the New York Times report that Israel conducted a covert operation with former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, warning that the leak could compromise intelligence assets and national security.
“There’s a pattern here—foreign sources publish information that harms national security, and it passes without consequences,” Asulin said on Channel 14’s “Sheva” program.
Asulin said that revealing operational details could endanger Mossad methods. “If according to these reports this event is real, people are going out and publishing data that can harm assets, intelligence, and national security in practice—and this happens again and again.”
1+In response, Channel 14 political analyst Yaakov Bardugo argued that Israeli journalists involved in such publications could be held accountable. “The power of the censor could be much greater—grab that journalist and strip him of the ability to write in the Israeli press,” he said. “Just because you’re writing in the United States—you as an Israeli are endangering Israel.”
1+Asulin predicted the publication will have consequences inside Iran. “I actually think this story will have a sequel, and we’ll see it mainly from the Iranian side,” he said, pointing to who might benefit from damaging the former president. “Who has an interest in harming Ahmadinejad? You need to look at the Iranian side. There he’s gained tremendous popularity with the general public, which is positioned between regime opponents and the classic ayatollah regime.”