Oded Eilam, a former head of the Mossad’s counterterrorism division, says incoming Mossad chief Roman Gofman must focus on building a new generation of operational and intelligence capabilities suited to Israel’s rapidly changing security environment.
In an interview with Radio Haifa, Eilam said Gofman’s decision to replace his deputy was legitimate and consistent with the leadership changes that commonly take place when a new chief assumes command of a major security organization.
According to Eilam, the Mossad can no longer focus primarily on Iran, Hezbollah and Tehran’s other regional terrorist proxies. It must also prepare for emerging threats, including Turkey and the Houthis, while developing new intelligence networks, operational tools and long-term capabilities.
Eilam said one of the central lessons of the October 7 massacre is that the Mossad must become more involved in arenas that were previously considered the exclusive responsibility of other Israeli security agencies. The intelligence failures surrounding the attack demonstrated the danger of rigid divisions of responsibility and the need for greater cooperation and information-sharing between Israel’s intelligence organizations.