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Breaking news on the Israeli national security state

Did Singapore Insist Benny Gantz’s Visit Be Secret to Avoid Assassination Attempt? Benny Gantz took a trip. But Israel's military censor prohibited reporting where he went. Why?

October 28, 2021 by Richard Silverstein 16 Comments

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Netanyahu state visit to Singapore

ניסיון הצנזורה נכשל: בני גנץ ביקר השבוע בסינגפור. למה הטיל צא”פ על הביקור? בשנת 2012, שר הביטחון דאז אהוד ברק ביקר בסינגפור.חוליית חיזבאללה זממה להתנקש בחייו במהלך שהותו. המוסד חשף את המזימה,  והזוממים נעצרו. סביר להניח שהסינגפורים רצו להימנע מחזרה על התקרית הזו.

Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz returned from a secret trip today.  Secret, because the military censor doesn’t want Israelis to know where he went.  Why? Your guess is as good as mine.  Nahum Barnea, veteran security reporter for Yediot, broke censorship, saying Gantz was in Singapore peddling Israeli weapons to the city-state’s military echelon:

Gantz was in Singapore on Tuesday.  The rumors spoke of a secret security mission.  But the official summary was far more modest: Singapore was the second nation which ever bought Israeli weapons (after the US).  Every prior defense minister (except Bennett) has made sure to conduct such a visit.

Then-defense minister, Ehud Barak, opens Israeli Pavillion at 2012 Singapore Air Show

But why would the trip be kept secret?  Singapore is not a Muslim country and it has had relations with Israel for decades.  When Netanyahu was prime minister, he traveled there and there was nothing secret about it.  Other than sheer pettiness, what would motivate the censor to keep a lid on this?

Tal Schneider reports that Singapore itself requested secrecy.  It seeks to conceal from its citizens the sources of the weapons it buys from the world’s arms makers.  A more persuasive reason might be this: in 2012, then-defense minister, Ehud Barak visited Singapore.  His visit was public knowledge.  A Hezbollah cell plotted to assassinate him during his stay.  They even obtained his schedule.  The Mossad uncovered the plot, informed the country’s intelligence agency and the plotters were arrested.  It seems likely the Singaporeans may have wanted to avoid a repeat of this incident.  They assessed that Iranian intelligence would welcome an opportunity to take a shot at Gantz if given the chance.  Secrecy was deemed the better part of valor.

Aside from this, Israel’s reputation on the world stage took a huge hit after its attack on Gaza last May.  Singapore is surrounded by Muslim states (Malaysia, Indonesia) and itself is 15% Muslim.  There was no upside for Singapore’s leaders to be publicly welcoming a former IDF chief of staff with blood on his hands, and who may be the subject of an ICC war crimes investigation.

IDF’s Media Feint

Before Barnea published his account. social media accounts of Israeli journalists buzzed with unofficial speculation about Waldo’s whereabouts.  One of the more likely scenarios had him in Azerbaijan.  Though Israel has had relations with Azerbaijan since 1992, it is a Muslim country surrounded by other Muslim states like Iran and Turkey.  For that reason, much of the commerce between the two states is done covertly.  The Azeri strongman leader, Aliyev, has spent billions filling his arsenal with Israeli armaments (notably drones) to fight his repeated wars with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Where’s Benny?

It’s a badly-kept secret that Israel has taken over Azeri airfields near the border with Iran and equipped them with all the equipment and infrastructure needed to mount an attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.  This includes Israel’s latest purchase, American F-35 warplanes which have touched down at the base.  These facilities are a key element of Israel’s strategic plan because it vastly reduces the flying time for Israeli warplanes from Israel to Iran.  The airfields could also serve as refueling stops for Israeli planes en route to Iran or returning from there to home bases inside Israel.  Israel has established secret surveillance facilities in (in the guise of a “smart city”) Azerbaijan aimed at scooping up Iranian intelligence and communications.

Azerbaijan has played a delicate game with its neighbors, especially Iran.  There is a large Azeri minority inside Iran.  And the two countries share a long history.  It’s well known that Iran has planted its own spies inside the country. Israel has done so as well, in order to keep an eye on Iran’s spies.

Azerbaijan recently conducted war maneuvers with Pakistan and Turkey near the Iranian border.  The military exercises alarmed Iran since it had not received prior notice.  In addition, there have been clashes between Iran and Azerbaijan over Iranian commerce with Armenia, with trucks blocked from crossing into Azeri territory on their way.

The most important reason for a Gantz visit would have been Israel’s escalating war hysteria against Iran.  This includes the announcement of a special $1.5-billion budgetary item funding preparations for an Israeli attack.  Also, this week’s cyber-attack on Iran’s gasoline supply network and recent attacks on its railway and ports offer further examples of Israel heating up the hawkish rhetoric.  For some reason, Israel wants Iran to believe it is prepared to go to war to stop its nuclear program.  Whether it really will do so is anyone’s guess.  But clearly, Gantz’s trip (if this was his secret destination) would have involved how Israel planned to use Azeri territory as part of its plan of attack.

But the truth was much more prosaic.  Gantz wasn’t planning a war against Iran. He was paying his respects to a well-heeled long-time weapons customer.  An Israeli journalist who was fed the false Azerbaijan angle accused the IDF of spreading false rumors; just as it did during last May’s Gaza war when it tried and failed to tempt Hamas militants to flood their tunnels so that Israel would test its new bunker buster bombs courtesy of Uncle Sam.  It did so by announcing via the media that it planned a massive ground assault.  Reporters dutifully reported it.  But Hamas knew better than to trust Israeli media. They weren’t fooled. And the bombs fell on tunnels which were virtually empty.

Richard Silverstein
Website | + posts

Silverstein has published Tikun Olam since 2003, It exposes the secrets of the Israeli national security state. He lives in Seattle, but his heart is in the east. He publishes regularly at Middle East Eye, the New Arab, and Jacobin Magazine. His work has also appeared in Al Jazeera English, The Nation, Truthout and other outlets.

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Filed Under: Mideast Peace, Technology-Security Tagged With: assassinations, benny gantz, hezbollah, Israel Defense Forces

Comments

  1. Potter says

    October 29, 2021 at 5:25 AM

    You’d think Israel’s interest would be in becoming a nation at peace with it’s neighbors, including, yes, Iran, and not drumming up war or promoting war, peddling weapons, intelligence, spyware, what have you elsewhere.What a disappointment.The world does not need this. How does this comport with Judaism?

    “The World” (PRI) program had two days of excellent interviews from Breaking the Silence members, one Israeli, one Palestinian, telling their stories.
    https://www.pri.org/file/2021-10-28/spiritual-edge-part-1
    https://www.pri.org/file/2021-10-28/hate-peace-worker-palestinian-story

    Reply
    • nessim dayan says

      October 29, 2021 at 6:55 AM

      it doesn’t, money is power, he aint gonna get a lot of bakshish by peddling intel or nvidia,
      so he gets it both as a seller agent and as dictator propping.
      again judaism is for the populace so that 48 can literally drop dead whilst the rabbis pharaohs the likes of deri and litzman can pretend to be zuckerman

      Reply
    • Cillian Keogh says

      October 29, 2021 at 7:44 AM

      @Potter

      Suppose just for a minute, that’s it’s Iran that’s the problem. That Iran is the aggressor.
      Bear in mind that Iran has already placed large proxy armies on Israel’s borders, whereas Israel has not set proxy armies on Iran’s borders.

      Suppose Iran is using the Israel/Palestine conflict as a wedge to pry apart and weaken the nearby Sunni Arab States.

      Suppose Iran really does want hegemony in the Middle East.

      Reply
      • Richard Silverstein says

        October 29, 2021 at 1:23 PM

        @ Cillian: Let’s not “suppose” since suppositions mean nothing. Let’s actually use historical evidence:

        1. Iran has not invaded another country or fought an offensive war in 200 years. Israel invades its neighbors and almost every war it has fought it initiated either with military action or political action which provoked hostilities.
        2. Israel has 200 nuclear weapons. Iran has none
        3. Israel has one of the world’s most advanced air forces with the latest US-made F-35 war planes and advanced US bunker buster bombs. Iran hasn’t purchased a new war plane in decades
        4. Israel has 6 nuclear-armed submarines, a number of whom patrol seas near Iran capable of launching nuclear warheads at Iranian targets. Iran has a fleet of armed power boats. No battleships, no submarines.
        5. Israel’s greatest ally is the most powerful military nation in the world who regularly re-supplies it with weapons during every extended conflict it has ever fought. Iran has no ally supplying it militarily due to sanctions
        6. Iran is an NPT signatory. Israel is not.
        7. While Iran has regional proxies in Syria and Lebanon (to a lesser extent in Yemen), Israel has a long history of both proxies (South Lebanon Army, Al-Nusra in Syria) and aggressive intervention in neighboring states even outside of wars or invasions. It has assassinated 3,000 Palestinians and others in scores of countries in the region and outside it (Lebanon, Iran, France, Syria, Tunisia, Cyprus, Dubai, Malaysia, Belgium, etc.).
        8. Iran has never struck any target inside Israel. Israel has assassinated scientists, sabotaged civilian infrastructure, and bombed nuclear facilities inside Iran mulitiple times.

        Only a few of the points attesting to Israel’s offensive capability and its history of aggression against its enemy states. As for Iran’s purported offensive activity and proxy relationships, they are largely defensive, offering Iran the chance to strike back against Israel should it launch an offensive attack.

        As for Iranian “hegemony,” don’t make me laugh. The only state in the region which asserts regional dominance is Israel. There are a few that attempt to assert influence beyond their borders like Turkey and Saudi Arabia (and Iran), but they are pikers compared to Israel. Their capacity to impact events outside their borders and their will to do so is much more limited.

        Do not post again in this thread.

        Reply
        • Sisyphus says

          October 29, 2021 at 2:56 PM

          Rich, I really thank you for countering this person’s post with facts. You educate us. (I say this with all due respect for my pie-in-the-sky post.)

          Reply
        • Kingfisher says

          October 30, 2021 at 2:37 AM

          1. Iran is not a peaceful country that promotes peace as implied by your point, you can promote evil as much as you want but it’s a fact that they provide terror groups with money and weapons.
          2. US and other superpowers got 10 times or more nuclear weapons each, does that mean they’re satanic? nuclear weapons are bad, we can all agree, but that doesn’t give any legitimacy to Iran or any opposition to a nuclear state, I could claim that Israel never used any nuclear weapons on anyone, does that say anything? no, silly point to make same as saying “‘X’ has big weapons and I’m scared”. (Peace comes from promoting peace and discouraging aggression, if you don’t know where Iran stands here, that’s on you).
          3. Again a point about possession of weapons, Iran has airplanes too, they reverse engineered an American UCAV last time I checked, don’t worry about their capabilities.
          4. Again with weapons…. I start to think that you are just trying to add more points to your post to make it seem like you are at the right.
          5. Metapoint about weapons, being friends with a nation that has a lot of weapons, very nicely put, too bad that it’s a weak point, the reason we don’t have big wars are international connections between countries, if Iran promoted peace and had true allies within countries that do promote peace instead of being allies with Shia law and radical Islam, they might have been in the peace promoting box like Israel and the US, but whatever serves your ideology works I suppose.
          6. A kid with an AK47 aims it at you and yells “I have no nuclear weapons, prepare to die”, who would you consider a peace promoter? the kid who is about shoot you or the state of Israel?
          7. Israel exists for less than 80 years, assassinations by Israel came in much later, yet you say it has done more aggressive intervention than Iran, I’m starting to think you don’t know what peace is, so it’s bad of Israel to kill terrorists or for the US to assassinate Qassem Sulimany, but for Iran to promote it’s ideology, weapons and infrastructure to terror organizations, that’s not a problem… are you a radical Islamist Mr.Silverstein?
          8. Iran has tried multiple times to attack Israel and it’s allies, it tried to sabotage and harm civilian vessels in the Persian gulf, they failed a lot of times and that’s the main difference.

          It saddens me to read how someone can try so hard to prove his radical points of view on a matter without objectively judging the case and it’s players for what they are and what guides them, you’re willing to judge the situation by amount of weapons and actions, without taking into considerations why they have so much weapons or why they had to resort to violence, did it stop evil from happening or did it create it? you have a serious problem if that’s how you judge geopolitical events.
          If I needed another supporting evidence that you are evil and you don’t even care for free speech or stopping Iran from promoting terrorism, you even tell the fellow above to not post again in this thread as if it were a threat, what are you so afraid of? the truth?

          As a fellow man hoping for a peaceful future, I hope that you wouldn’t delete or alter this post so others can read, understand and do their own search for facts on each point you made.

          Hoping for a better tomorrow,
          Kingfisher.

          Reply
          • Richard Silverstein says

            October 30, 2021 at 9:06 PM

            @ Kingfish:

            Iran is not a peaceful country that promotes peace

            Israel is not a peaceful country that promotes peace. And as my comment showed, Israel poses FAR more danger to the region than Iran. It has far more lethal weaponry and can do immense damage throughout the region. Iran’s capabilities are limited by comparison.

            you can promote evil

            I take offense at this calumny. Iran is not “evil.” You will never say this again here or you will be banned permanently. I do not permit commenters to smear me in this fashion.

            they provide terror groups with money and weapons.

            Yes they do, just like Israel does.

            US and other superpowers got 10 times or more nuclear weapons each, does that mean they’re satanic?

            I never said Israel was “satanic.” YOu used the term, not me. I oppose all nuclear weapons held by all countries which have them, including Israel & the US.

            I could claim that Israel never used any nuclear weapons on anyone

            Not for want of trying. In fact, Moshe Dayan in the first days of the 1973 War lobbied Golda to drop a nuclear bomb. She didn’t. But if he had been PM, he might have.

            Peace comes from promoting peace and discouraging aggression,

            As I’ve said here before, the only time nuclear weapons deter aggression is when two hostile nations each have such weapons. If only one does, this actually encourages aggression.

            Iran has airplanes too,

            F-4 Phantom jets circa 1970s.

            don’t worry about their capabilities.

            Iran’s military might is the equivalent of a slingshot compared to Israel’s.

            if Iran promoted peace and had true allies within countries that do promote peace instead of being allies with Shia law and radical Islam,

            This is Shiaphobia, a close cousin to Islamophobia. It is not permitted here. Read the commennt rules.

            in the peace promoting box like Israel and the US

            Israel and the US are two of the most aggressive warmongering nations in the world. Together we’ve killed more and invaded more than any other two countries in the past 40 yrs.

            A kid with an AK47 aims it at you and yells “I have no nuclear weapons, prepare to die”, who would you consider a peace promoter? the kid who is about shoot you or the state of Israel?

            Israel aims a nuclear warhead at you and says “we will use it unless you do what we say.” Who is more a peace promoter?

            Israel exists for less than 80 years, assassinations by Israel came in much later,

            Nonsense, the Yishuv leadership and its rivals have been assassinated Palestinians and even fellow Jews going back 100 years. Do your homework before spouting nonsense. And the Mossad’s assassination campaign began just after the state was founded. Not “must later.”

            for Iran to promote it’s ideology, weapons and infrastructure to terror organizations, that’s not a problem

            I don’t support Iran’s ideology. I don’t support its alliances with Hezbollah or Assad or the Houthis. But given the provocations and aggression against it by Israel and the Saudis I’m not about to deny it the right to defend itself and strike out in response to such aggression.

            are you a radical Islamist Mr.Silverstein?

            I’m not. But I’ll tell you something you are…banned. No one says or even implies such garbage here. Posting here is not a right. It’s a privilege. You smear me, you’re gone.

            Iran has tried multiple times to attack Israel

            “Trying” is not the same as succeeding. Israel has succeeded. Iran has failed.

          • Ted Barber says

            October 31, 2021 at 12:54 AM

            @Richard Silverstein

            “Israel is not a peaceful country that promotes peace.?

            Yet Israel has made peace with her neighbors in Egypt and Jordan and Israel has just signed onto the Abraham Accords which ‘normalize’ relations with many of the Arab States. Israelis are flying to vacation in Dubai, and air service between Saudi Arabia and Israel has begun for the first time.

            All of which, sounds peaceful.

          • Richard Silverstein says

            November 1, 2021 at 12:58 PM

            @ Ted Barber: How about this? Does this sound “peaceful?” 40,000 Arab dead since 1948. Hundreds of Palestinian children imprisoned in Israeli jails. Constant invasions of Lebanon and Gaza which kill thousands. Repeated attacks on foreign countries, invading their sovereignty in violation of international law. An ICC investigation for war crimes. 3,000 Mossad assassinations since 1948. 200 nuclear warheads.

            I don’t think so.

        • Ted Barber says

          October 31, 2021 at 10:33 AM

          “There are a few that attempt to assert influence beyond their borders like Turkey and Saudi Arabia (and Iran), but they are pikers compared to Israel”

          Not so. Turkey has intervened militarily in Libya, Syria and Nagorno-Karabakh…

          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_wars_involving_Turkey

          …and Saudi Arabia has been at war with Yemen’s Houthis for seven years.

          Reply
          • Richard Silverstein says

            November 1, 2021 at 1:00 PM

            @ Ted Barber: Whatever Turkey or Saudi Arabia have done it does not begin to match the intensity and level of aggression and intervention that Israel has engaged in. In Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Gaza. Israel has engaged in military attacks in all these places and has done so for decades. As I wrote earlier, the Turks and Saudis are pickers by comparison.

      • Sisyphus says

        October 29, 2021 at 2:53 PM

        Keogh, suppose for a minute that we recognize that no ONE entity always bears the total culpability for any aggression or transgression against another entity’s boundary. This is a truth for any group, be it two in a family, a family in a community, a state in a country, or a country in a particular part of the planet. Furthermore, none of this malevolent behavior has its genesis in a vacuum. It behooves us as creatures with a frontal cortex to understand causes and effects without demonizing others and assigning blame; we need to focus on cathecting compassion and searching for solutions, sans testosterone overload and egos. Why?

        Because we’ve managed to destroy our planet and extirpate and exterminate thousands of fauna and flora species. We have a small window of time to use our collective brains and stem the tide of irreversible damage.
        Why not spend energy to do this instead of invading and killing each other?

        Reply
        • Richard Silverstein says

          October 29, 2021 at 5:03 PM

          Amen brother (or sister).

          Reply
      • nessim dayan says

        October 29, 2021 at 5:23 PM

        Hegemony. Non starter , iran is not rich. Put saudis+emiratis+bahrain+Dubai they’ll more than fend off the poor egomaniacs. Even if they muster a bomb do you see that pile of gold sitting on their hands. Na-ah. Further israel has no proxies . only Hezbollah. They try to build it up except now they have a tiny issue of flying the non relevant flag 🚩 of them being lebanon protectors as they did once. That fly aint flying. And israel keeps swatting every new building or transport they try to make a go. So whackamole in Gaza’s tunnels and irans ambitions in syria that are being limited by putins ambitions to have a part as well as an airport in west med. So this doesn’t fly with irans ambitions. Bottom line Iran’s activities are nothing more than a new and improved somalias pirates.

        Reply
  2. nessim dayan says

    October 29, 2021 at 6:50 AM

    nah, remember the old adage, knowledge is power, better keep the populace barefoot and pregnant, they wont ask insolent questions,
    everything is secret here including the price tags on any item, why, so we can charge more depending on who’s the most sucker of the customer.
    it is laughable the behavior of any individual behind a counter, first they cant answer because they have no idea what they are selling and so on .
    i have learned to read at least 7 daily newspapers in order to know approximately what is the real story.
    remember when gantz declared all palestinians ngo as terror and i said it was personal, here we go again, he’s ego is hurt that shmoo benett is sitting on the throne and not him, instead of peddling knowledge to be imparted to potential israeli customer, he imparts terror by selling arms and peddling to dictators,\
    i oughtnot be surprised if i am tilded antisemite by criticizing so much, oh well

    Reply
    • nessim dayan says

      October 29, 2021 at 5:31 PM

      An item in today’s haaretz clearly clarify the why if the ngo kerfuffle. It’s because gantz got rebuked for meeting with abbas and none of the left supported him. He supposedly tried to build bridges and got the height of poo 💩 and no meretz or labor backs. So there . ye old that for tat

      Reply

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