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Courage Is Contagious: Viewing Cable 05telaviv1580, Mossad Chief To Codel Corzine: Some Foreign

The Mossad Chief told a Congressional delegation that some foreign fighters have begun leaving Iraq, possibly indicating a shift in the insurgency there. However, he worried that the countries these militants return to, such as Saudi Arabia and Syria, may not be able to control them, potentially threatening regional stability and Israel. The Mossad Chief also believed that talks with Iran over its nuclear program would ultimately fail and the issue would go to the UN Security Council.

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42 views4 pages

Courage Is Contagious: Viewing Cable 05telaviv1580, Mossad Chief To Codel Corzine: Some Foreign

The Mossad Chief told a Congressional delegation that some foreign fighters have begun leaving Iraq, possibly indicating a shift in the insurgency there. However, he worried that the countries these militants return to, such as Saudi Arabia and Syria, may not be able to control them, potentially threatening regional stability and Israel. The Mossad Chief also believed that talks with Iran over its nuclear program would ultimately fail and the issue would go to the UN Security Council.

Uploaded by

Chris Warwick
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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courage is contagious

Viewing cable 05TELAVIV1580, MOSSAD CHIEF TO CODEL CORZINE: SOME FOREIGN


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containing the reference ID e.g. #05TELAVIV1580.

Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin


2005-03-17 2010-11-28 Embassy Tel
05TELAVIV1580 SECRET
10:10 18:06 Aviv

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full


text of the original cable is not available.

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 TEL AVIV 001580

SIPDIS

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Cable Viewer

EO 12958 DECL: 03/15/2010


TAGS PGOV, PREL, KWBG, IR, IS, COUNTERTERRORISM, GOI EXTERNAL
SUBJECT: MOSSAD CHIEF TO CODEL CORZINE: SOME FOREIGN
FIGHTERS BEGINNING TO LEAVE IRAQ

Classified By: Pol/C Ambassador Daniel C. Kurtzer for reasons 1.4


(b) an d (d).

¶1. (S) Summary: Mossad Chief Meir Dagan told CODEL Corzine March
13 that Israeli and U.S. thinking on Iran largely tracks, adding
that he believes the EU dialogue with Iran will ultimately fail.
Dagan said that Israel has evidence that some foreign fighters
have returned home from Iraq, perhaps indicating that the tide
may be starting to turn in the U.S. battle against the insurgency
there. He worried however, that these militants’ countries of
origin -- in particular Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria and Sudan --
are ill-equipped to control the returning jihadis, who might then
pose a threat to stability in the region and, ultimately, to
Israel. End Summary.

----
Iran
----

¶2. (C) Senator Jon Corzine, accompanied by Senate staff member


Evan Gottesman, the Ambassador, Pol/Res and Poloff (notetaker),
met with Mossad Chief Meir Dagan March 13. Acknowledging that
there are at times differences in analysis of the facts, Dagan
stressed that it is similarities rather than differences that are
at the heart of the GOI-U.S. intelligence relationship,
particularly on Iran. The facts themselves are not in dispute,
Dagan continued, adding that the U.S. and Israeli assessments of
Iran’s intentions and plans are largely in accord. Iran has
decided to go nuclear, Dagan said, and nothing will stop it.
Dagan predicted that the EU dialogue with Iran will not succeed
and that the issue of Iran’s nuclear ambitions would eventually
go to the UN
Security Council.

-------------------------------------
Iraq - Foreign Fighters Heading Home?
-------------------------------------

¶3. (S) In response to the Senator’s question, Dagan said that


the tide may be starting to turn in Iraq with regard to foreign
militant activity. Dagan said Israel has evidence that foreign
fighters originating from Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Syria and Yemen
have arrived back in their home countries, and he assumes that
some had returned to Saudi Arabia as well. Dagan predicted that,
as with men who fought in Afghanistan during the 80’s and 90’s,
these returning militants would stay in touch with each other,
forming a network based on their common experiences in Iraq.

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Cable Viewer

¶4. (S) Stressing that Israel has no assets in Iraq other than a
friendly relationship with the Kurds, Dagan said that Israel’s
interest is more in the impact the jihadis from, for example,
Jordan and Saudi Arabia, will have once they return to their
countries of origin. Although he predicts Egypt and Jordan will
“do all right,” Dagan said he is less confident that governments
in Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Syria, and Sudan are sufficiently well-
equipped to face down the domestic challenge these returning
militants will pose. The combination of their military training
and the absence of strong governments willing and able to
confront these men could have a devastating impact on Israel by
causing chaos in their home countries, he added. Dagan predicted
that these jihadis will have less of a direct impact on
Palestinians, because Palestinians are already well aware of
militant views and opinions via Internet chat rooms. Furthermore,
Dagan said he feels that most Palestinians are not searching for
“foreign flags,” such as al-Qaeda, under which to rally, because
those inclined to do so are already being well-mobilized under
existing groups in the West Bank and Gaza.

-------
Lebanon
-------

¶5. (C) Dagan opined that Hizballah will never make the
transition to a purely political party in Lebanon, since the
organization remains very dependent on its jihadi orientation.
Noting that even the recent Hizaballah-sponsored march in Beirut
has not deterred the Lebanese from pressing for a full Syrian
withdrawal, Dagan advised the U.S. to remain firm in its demand
for a complete pullout, and attributed the willingness of the
Lebanese people to rise up to U.S. action in Iraq.
--------------------------------------------- -------------
Essential to Use All Assets in the Fight Against Terrorism
--------------------------------------------- -------------

¶6. (C) Dagan said it is essential to combine all types of


intelligence assets, rather than relying exclusively on human
intelligence or signal intercepts, to counter terrorist threats.
Terrorist organizations have been seeking to obtain WMD as a
matter of course and, unlike countries that wish to acquire these
weapons as a deterrent, non-state actors would be more inclined
to actually use them, in Dagan’s opinion. Asked about the
relationship between illicit activities such as narcotic or arms
trafficking and terrorism, Dagan confirmed that terrorist
organizations try to fund their activities by criminal means,
adding that credit card fraud and counterfeiting are also methods
favored by these groups. Weapons originating from Yemen and Sudan
are smuggled into the territories through Egypt for sale, as well
as for use by militants, Dagan said.

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Cable Viewer

¶7. (U) CODEL Corzine did not have an opportunity to clear this
message.
*********************************************
******************** Visit Embassy Tel Aviv’s Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/telaviv
You can also access this site through the State Department’s
Classified SIPRNET website.
*********************************************
******************** KURTZER

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