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Two senior officials of Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad, have been removed after their involvement in developing a failed Iran regime-change strategy, Israeli television reported, as the agency undergoes a broader restructuring.
According to Israel's Channel 12, Mossad Director Roman Gofman removed the two officials as part of a broader organisational restructuring within the agency. One of the officials had served as head of Mossad's intelligence directorate since December, while the other led the agency's Iran division. The Channel 12 report said that both officials were among the architects of a written operational plan that sought to challenge Iran's Islamic Republic through support for minority groups and by encouraging renewed mass protests against the government. The plan was reportedly discussed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while attempting to persuade US President Donald Trump to launch military action against Iran in February, according to Channel 12. Security sources cited by the Israeli network said the two officials had disagreements with Gofman from the beginning. However, the sources told the network that their departures were by mutual agreement and formed part of a wider restructuring process within Mossad. Both officials are expected to continue serving in other positions within the agency, the report added. The reported Mossad strategy for regime change involved Israeli strikes on positions of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) near the country's border with Iraq, particularly in Iranian Kurdistan, according to a report by The New York Times. The strikes were reportedly intended to create an opportunity for Kurdish fighters to enter Iran and advance towards Kurdish-majority areas in the country's northwest. The plan was based on the expectation that thousands of young Kurds would join the armed groups, potentially expanding the movement into a broader uprising reaching Tehran. According to multiple reports, the strategy also aimed to encourage a larger protest movement that could weaken the Iranian government. The plan reportedly included the possibility of installing former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the country's leader. The New York Times also reported that Israel had undertaken a multi-year effort to establish contact with Ahmadinejad, including an alleged meeting with then-Mossad chief David Barnea on the sidelines of an academic conference in Hungary. During the recent conflict, Israel and the United States carried out extensive strikes against Iranian security infrastructure, including regime targets, military facilities, missile systems, police stations and Basij positions in northwestern Iran. However, according to reports, diplomatic pressure from Turkey and concerns among Kurdish groups themselves contributed to Washington abandoning the reported plan by Israel. The broader objective of the reported strategy was not only to weaken Iran's military capabilities but also to reduce threats linked to Tehran's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes. A New York Times report in April quoted US officials as saying that some members of the Trump administration had supported the belief that Iran's leadership could be removed and its military capabilities significantly weakened. However, top officials in the Trump administration later described Netanyahu's prediction of regime change as "farcical" and "bulls***". (ANI)
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