Israel: Senior Mossad officials resign over 'organisational changes'

At least three senior officials from Israeli intelligence agency Mossad have resigned over “organisational changes” made by the new director, Israeli Channel 13 reported on Thursday.

According to the Israeli TV channel, the three officials were some of Mossad’s most senior officials.

The channel reported that a fourth senior official is allegedly considering quitting, noting that they had resigned due to the changes made by the agency’s new head David Barnea, who succeeded former director Yossi Cohen in June.

According to The Times of Israel, the Israeli TV channel identified the officials who resigned as the heads of the technology, operations and anti-terrorism divisions.

The officials said that Barnea had decided to divide responsibilities within the spy agency, splitting existing branches and merging divisions.

Some Israeli mass media outlets described the wave of resignations among Mossad officials as an “earthquake”, Quds Press reported.

Barnea, also known by his nickname “Dadi”, served as a combat soldier in the elite Sayeret Matkal commando unit and has worked with Mossad for 25 years. He was appointed Cohen’s deputy in 2019.

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