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Those of you up on the minutiae of the Rosen-Weissman Aipac Two spy case will recall that two Israeli officials most implicated were Uzi Arad and Naor Gilon. As a result of catching Rosen in flagrante Arad, who served several decades in the Mossad, was named persona non grata and his visa revoked. Which is a tad problematic for him as Bibi Netanyahu named him his national security advisor. It’s quite inconvenient for such an individual not to be allowed to visit the country which is Israel’s chief sponsor.
In addition, Naor Gilon, the Israeli operative with whom Rosen, Weissman and Franklin were caught having lunch, retreated to the Israeli embassy where he was forced to bivouac for a few months till it was convenient for Israel to spirit him out of the country. Needless to say, except for one brief visit, Naor hasn’t been welcome back either.
Fortunately for this individual, who a number of knowledgeable analysts suggest was the D.C. embassy’s Mossad station chief, life has been kind. Danny Ayalon, named by Avigdor Lieberman to be the deputy foreign minister, appointed Gilon to be his chief of staff. Apparently, Israeli spies caught red-handed by the FBI receive handsome rewards in the Israeli political system.
I raise this matter because it will interesting to watch how the Obama administration reacts to the Israeli request that visas for the two “diplomats” be restored. Surely, the Israelis have been lobbying American officials hard. And surely they have solicited help from their “best friends” (of whom there are quite a few) within the administration.
Keep an eye on the headlines. If and when you see the visas restored you will then know that another Israeli espionage caper has been papered over successfully. No damage done to any Israeli (davke l’hefech, as they say in Hebrew). The only damage done to U.S. intelligence interests.
