Ex-Mossad chief Pardo
Photo: Kobi GIdeon/GPO
Ex-Israeli spy chief: Netanyahu planned Iran strike in 2011
Former Mossad director Tamir Pardo claims in television interview that in 2011 PM Netanyahu ordered army to prepare to attack Iran 'within 15 days'; order not part of drill, Pardo alleges, adding he sought clarifications from multiple sources to ensure he was not carrying out an illegal order.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the order in 2011 for the military to prepare to attack Iran within 15 days, a former Mossad chief said in remarks released on Thursday.
Tamir Pardo, who served as head of the intelligence agency from 2011 to 2016, told Israeli Keshet TV's investigative show Uvda that the order was not given "for the sake of a drill," according to excerpts of the interview released ahead of the broadcast on Thursday evening.
"When he tells you to start the countdown process, you know that he isn't playing games with you," Pardo was quoted as saying. "These things have enormous significance."
Ex-Mossad chief Pardo (L) claimed PM Netanyahu ordered the military to prepare to attack Iran in 2011 (Photo: Kobi Gideon/GPO)
There was no immediate comment from Netanyahu's office on Pardo's claim.
On Wednesday, Netanyahu said Israel "will not allow Iran to arm itself with nuclear weapons. We will continue to act against its intentions to establish itself militarily in Syria besides us, not just opposite the Golan Heights, but any place in Syria."
Pardo's claim comes as archenemies Israel and Iran are fighting a shadow war in Syria, which briefly threatened to burst into full-blown conflagration this month after Israel bombed Iranian positions in Syria, killing Iranian fighters after an alleged Iranian rocket barrage toward the Golan Heights.
The Iranian drone
In February, Israel shot down what it said was an armed Iranian drone that entered Israeli airspace. Israel responded by attacking anti-aircraft positions in Syria, and an Israeli warplane was shot down during the battle.
Footage of drone's interception and destruction of its operations trailer (צילום: דובר צה"ל)
Israel has increasingly warned that it sees Iranian influence in Syria as a threat, pointing to Iran's military presence inside the country as well as that of Iranian-backed militiamen.
Netanyahu has long been a strident critic of Iran and has accused Tehran of attempting to develop nuclear weapons and long range ballistic missiles. Ex-prime minister Ehud Barak, who served as Netanyahu's defense minister in 2011, has previously claimed Netanyahu sought to bomb Iran in 2010 and 2011, but was opposed by senior Israeli officials.
Fmr. defense minister Barak (L) previously claimed PM Netanyahu had indeed intended to attack Iran (Photo: AFP)
Pardo said that upon receiving the command, he sought "clarifications about everything I could, I checked with legal advisers, I consulted with everyone I could to understand who is authorized to give the order concerning launching a war."
According to the excerpts, Pardo said he wanted "to be certain that if, heaven forbid, something incorrect happened, even if the mission failed, that there won't be a situation where I carried out an illegal operation."
It wasn't clear from the preview what happened after Netanyahu's purported order but Israel never carried out a strike on Iran in 2011.
Netanyahu has recently intensified his criticism of the nuclear agreement reached between world powers and Iran in 2015. President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from that deal earlier this month.
There is also a concerted effort by Netanyahu's administration to convince Russia to pressure Iran to withdraw its forces from war-torn Syria.
