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| Even in the Never-Never Land of Israeli Intelligence, the Truth Occasionally Will Come Out |
| 2004-02-04 |
| Richard H. Curtiss Itâs no secret that much of the news reported in Israelâs Hebrew-language media never reaches the mainstream American press, for the simple reason that items unfavorable to Israel generally are not translated. And, because very few Israelis break this self-imposed censorship, items from the Hebrew press that do appear may be much more newsworthy than their anemic English translations indicate. It was a bit stunning, therefore, to read an article in Strategic Assessment, the quarterly bulletin issued by the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv University. The report, titled âThe War in Iraq: An Intelligence Failure?â was written by Shlomo Brom, a brigadier general in the Israeli army reserves, and said what no one seems to have dared publish since President George W. Bush decided to wage war on Iraq. Shockingly, it told the full truth about the American and British intelligence âsourcesâ making the case for war. In fact, according to Brom, these sources were utterly compromised by Israeli intelligence, which made the case for starting the war and kept it going as long as necessary. The retired general described Israel as a âfull partnerâ in U.S. and British intelligence failures that exaggerated Iraqi President Saddam Hussainâs nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs in the lead up to the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. Israeli intelligence sources and political leaders provided âan exaggerated assessment of Iraqi capabilities,â raising âthe possibility that the intelligence had been manipulated,â wrote Brom, former deputy chief of planning for the Israeli army. Brom said his remarks were directed at Israelâs Military Intelligence, Air Force Intelligence and the Mossad intelligence agency. The Israeli army declined to comment on his report, and the Mossad did not return press calls. David Baker, spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, also refused to comment on the report. However, similar allegations have surfaced from U.S. and British sources following months of futile efforts to uncover evidence of Iraqâs pre-war weapons programs. In a Dec. 5 article, Washington Post correspondent Molly Moore quoted from the report: ââIn the questioning of the picture painted by coalition intelligence, the third party in this intelligence failure, Israel, has remained in the shadowsâŠA critical question to be answered is whether governmental bodies falsely manipulated the intelligence information in order to gain support for their decision to go to war in Iraq, while the real reasons for this decision were obfuscated or concealed.ââ Articles by Laura King of the Los Angeles Times, Peter Enav of Salon.com.News, and the Associated Press also appeared on the report. Israel was a âfull partnerâ in U.S. and British intelligence failures. Brigadier General Bromâs criticism of the Israeli intelligence communityâwhich many Americans believe to be one of, if not the worldâs bestâwas unusual. Like many retired intelligence officers, Brom, who retired after a 25-year career, most likely continued to be privy to a great deal of sensitive government information. Salon.comâs Enav quotes Stuart A. Cohen, vice chairman of the U.S. National Intelligence Council, as having written in November that, given all the evidence the U.S. possessed on Iraq, âno reasonable person could haveâŠreached any conclusions or alternative views that were profoundly different from those that we reached.â Cohen, Enav pointed out, âwas the acting chairman of the council when he oversaw the production of a National Intelligence Estimate summarizing U.S. evidence on Iraqâs alleged weapons programs, concluding that Iraq possessed prohibited biological and chemical weapons and missiles and was producing more.â According to Brom, however, Israeli intelligence âbadly overestimated the Iraqi threat to Israel and reinforced the American and British belief that the weapons existed.â Attributing the poor intelligence to a lack of professionalism and poor supervision, Brom wrote, âEven if Iraq had any Scud missiles left, I canât understand how Israeli intelligence officers came to believe they threatened Israel, particularly when they hadnât been used in more than 10 years. Itâs a clear example of how an inability to think clearly is undermining the Israeli intelligence community.â Noted Enav, âIsraeli leaders said on the eve of the Iraq war there was an outside chance that Saddam Hussain might arm Scud missiles with chemical or biological agents and attack the country. Partially based on the precedent of the 39 Iraqi Scuds that hit Israel during the 1991 Gulf war, the warning resulted in the expenditure of tens of millions of dollars and disrupted daily life. âBrom also cited bitter memories of the 1973 Middle East war,â Enav reported, âwhen Israeli intelligence failed to anticipate an attack by Egypt and Syria, and the country suffered thousands of casualties.â As Brom observed in his report, âIsraeli intelligence agencies have tended to overstate the threat the country faces ever since 1973.â Wrote The Postâs Moore, âThe study did not cite specific exchanges of intelligence. Israeli officials frequently told foreign journalists before the war that Israel and the United States were sharing information, particularly regarding Iraqi missiles and nonconventional weapons that could possibly be used against Israel. The report accused intelligence agencies of being blinded by a one-dimensional perception of Saddam Hussain.â Moore continued, âAt the heart of this perception lay the colorful portrait of an embodiment of evil, a man possessed by a compulsion to develop weapons of mass destruction in order to strike Israel and others, regardless of additional considerations.â According to Moore, âThe analysis said a âcertain degree of intelligence wariness is justified,â but added, âthe problem lies in getting carried away to extremes, as was clearly the case with Israeli intelligence on Iraqâ⊠âWhen âIsraeli intelligence became aware that certain items had been transferred by the head of the regime from Iraq to Syria,â Moore quoted the report as saying, ââIsraeli intelligence immediately portrayed itâincluding in leaks to the mediaâas if Iraq was moving banned weapons out of Iraq in order to conceal them.ââ Brom criticized Israeli intelligence for failing to include the more probable scenario that Saddam Hussain and his aides were moving cash or family members out of the country in the face of an impending attack. âThe study noted,â Moore wrote, âthat Israeli and U.S. governments have disagreed over the past decade on the âweight of various threats in the Middle East.â The report said Israel has generally claimed that Iran poses a more serious threat than Iraq, because the latter was âcontained and under control.ââ Moore further quoted the Brom report as saying that âOnce the Bush administration decided to take action against Iraq, it was more difficult for Israel to maintain its position that dealing with Iraq was not the highest priority, especially when it was obvious that the war would serve Israelâs interests.â According to Laura Kingâs report, âBefore the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March, Israeli officials sent mixed signals to the public over the threat of a biological or chemical attack by Hussainâs forces. They described the likelihood of Israel being targeted as slight, yet the country was placed on a war footing. Jet fighters patrolled the skies 24 hours a day. Israelis were told to prepare âsealed roomsâ in which they could take shelter in the event of an attack. Children were sent off to school carrying gas masks. Many Israelis had vivid memories of the 1991 Persian Gulf war, during which Iraq lobbed 39 Scud missiles at Israel, none armed with a chemical or biological agent.â Enav quoted Israeli legislator Yossi Sarid, now a member of the pro-peace opposition Meretz Party, as calling âfor a parliamentary inquiry on the performance of Israeli intelligence services. âSarid told Israel Radio,â Enav reported, that âthe article proved that Israeli intelligence assessments on Iraq caused Israel considerable damage by compelling it to prepare for âthreats that did not exist.ââ One thing is certain. Israelâs competing intelligence services soon will beginâif they havenât alreadyâto write scenarios explaining why it will be necessary to bomb Iranian weapons technology, and a whole new virtual weapons industry will materialize. The reason, of course, is to focus international attention on yet another ârogue state,â so as not to have to deal with the real problem, making peace with Palestinians. How much longer can this flight from reality be allowed to last? Richard H. Curtiss is executive editor of the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. |
| Posted by:Lorne Wilberger |
| #11 You were nothing but a minor place holder for a latin joke Wilberger, don't let it go to your head. |
| Posted by: McMurtry 2004-2-4 6:23:48 PM |
| #10 Lorne: You've picked a fight with the wrong guy. JFM is the leader of the French Resistance, one of Rantburg's top agents in Weasel-Occupied Europe. La Résistance attaque le troll ! Vive l'Maquis! |
| Posted by: Mike 2004-2-4 6:10:59 PM |
| #9 JFM has to be careful as a troll bite can fester for weeks unless treated immediately with Preparation H. |
| Posted by: whitecollar redneck 2004-2-4 5:49:10 PM |
| #8 Troll lairs can be readily identified by the piles of empty Cheese Whiz cans and triple highlighted, dog eared copies of the "Elders of Zion". |
| Posted by: whitecollar redneck 2004-2-4 5:43:49 PM |
| #7 Watch as JFM coaxes the troll out of his lair. Crikey! That's a beaut. |
| Posted by: whitecollar redneck 2004-2-4 5:37:11 PM |
| #6 JFM, does your initials stand for 'Just a Fuc*in Moron', if so that explains your comments. |
| Posted by: Lorne Wilberger 2004-2-4 5:34:22 PM |
| #5 We have entered Terra incognita, here there be trolls! |
| Posted by: whitecollar redneck 2004-2-4 5:32:57 PM |
| #4 Mr Wilberger Explain me why you make so much fuss about at most three thousands of Palestinians killed (most of them killed while trying to kill someone else) and so little about the two million blacks killed in South Sudan? It is because the momma boy in you wants to show his "rebellion" by hating everything who is western and friendly to the US, or because Israelis are Jews and you are a Nazi? Or is it because South Sudanese are blacks and as a KKK member you believe that whites have the right to enslave, rape and kill blacks? Anyway you are despicable but I would really like to tune my reasons for despising you. |
| Posted by: JFM 2004-2-4 5:24:33 PM |
| #3 Hey Lorne (if that is your name) - ever hear of "edited for length"? Try it sometime. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-2-4 5:02:38 PM |
| #2 The WRMEA is socialist cess-pool. I don't think there's a salt lick big enough for this trash story....other than the troll who posted it. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2004-2-4 4:57:27 PM |
| #1 Peace is coming--the wall is being built! |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2004-2-4 4:47:54 PM |