Russia, Iran weapon supply chain puts Israel at risk - Mossad chief
Barnea hinted that he and his allies had a hand in blocking Russian-Iranian arms deals which could have led to Iran getting nuclear weapons.
The Mossad and other intelligence bodies have thwarted 27 Iranian terrorist plots against Israelis on almost every continent so far this year, Mossad Director David Barnea said Sunday.He and his allies had a hand in blocking Russian-Iranian arms deals, which could have led to Iran getting more advanced weapons, Barnea hinted during a speech at Reichman University’s International Counter-Terrorism Conference.“The first factor feeding Iran’s overinflated ego is the assistance it has been giving Russia through the sale of UAVs,” he said. “We know that the Iranians were planning to sell Russia short-range and long-range missiles too, but this deal has been interdicted.“I have a feeling that more deals will be interdicted soon. We are concerned that the Russians will meet Iran’s demands to supply it with weapons and raw materials that will put Israel at risk.”Israel is ready to “exact a price from the highest officials in the heart of Iran,” if necessary, to defend Israel from Iran’s attacks and threats,” Barnea said.Proxies are Iran’s way to hide its terrorist face, but Tehran is behind practically everything: terrorist acts, logistics, money, and support – all under orders from the very top, he said.
Proxies are Iran’s way to hide its terrorist face, but Tehran is behind practically everything: terrorist acts, logistics, money, and support – all under orders from the very top, he said.Barnea presented videos from the capture and interrogation by Mossad agents of Iranian terrorists in Tanzania and Cyprus. The list of countries in which terrorist agents were caught also included Georgia, Greece, and Germany, he said.Yousef Shahbazi Abbasalilo was an Iranian operative in Cyprus, and Hamidreza Abraheh was an Iranian operative in Tanzania, he added.
The danger of a terror state becoming a nuclear state
The world needs to understand the danger of a terrorist state that also becomes a nuclear state, Barnea said, adding that “Iran will never get a nuclear weapon.”“Next month, the UN weapons embargo expires” – from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (Iran nuclear deal) – something Iran will use to gain cheaper access to weapons, he said, adding: “We will not let Iran remain at its current nuclear levels. Even if there is full return to the nuclear deal, this will not undo Iran’s new nuclear knowledge. Everything is Iran’s cynical move to get money back without giving up its nuclear progress.”Barnea also blasted the US deal with Iran, allowing the return of billions of dollars that had been frozen as part of nuclear sanctions, to secure the release of five American hostages. Iran still has not answered International Atomic Energy Agency surveillance demands or answered probe questions into Tehran’s illicit nuclear violations, he said.“I can’t show our methods in a video, but you know we are not sitting passively” regarding Iran’s nuclear weapons development, Barnea said.Iran’s deal with the Saudis was extremely temporary, and they eventually would return to their traditional adversarial relationship, he said.
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