"Will the Dubai hit increase Israel's global isolation?" By Haaretz Editorial

 "These are the known facts: The Dubai police claim that 26 visitors entered and exited the emirate over the past year on false British, Irish, Australian, German and French passports. Some or all were involved in the assassination of senior Hamas operative Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, who also entered Dubai under a false identity. The Dubai police chief has accused the Mossad of the January 19 hit. He has presented no proof, but more than half of the fake passports in Dubai bore the names of Israelis. 

The European Union and the countries whose passports were counterfeited have criticized the misuse of their identity documents without mentioning the names of those responsible. French President Nicolas Sarkozy termed the assassination utterly unjustified - "nothing more than a murder." Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in Mabhouh's killing or in falsifying the documents, but former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff Dan Halutz said that such actions attributed to Israel "deter terror organizations." "

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Several networks here and abroad have called for my opinion on this matter.  I have declined to be interviewed, saving this for you.  The best was a foreign network in which the "booker" wanted to know if I would subscribe to the rumor being bruted about (or aboot for South Parkers) that the Israelis wanted to be caught so that they could seem more "bad-assed" (my vernacular).  I laughed and told her that this rumor was clever on the part of the Mossad.  In fact, they and the Israeli general staff intelligence are just not very good services.  AIPAC does its best to disguise that but in truth most of what the Israelis have, their friends gave them.

Dubai?  They screwed up.  Too many people, too clumsy, too arrogant in their assumption that the "ragheads" would never catch them.  The truth is that the Israelis think of all gentiles that way.  pl 

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1152509.html

Comments

[Dan M]

Col.,
I just can't figure the number of people no matter how arrogant I assume the Israelis were. Or is there something i'm missing here -- teams of 3-4 on call at 1 hour intervals or something to carry out the deed if the opportunity presented itself? Don't really know anything on how one would arrange something like this. But a priori i can't make any more than 10 people make sense in my head.

[Patrick Lang]

Danny Boy

You don't get it because you are not a bureaucrat staff driven creep. pl

[B. D. Warbucks]

It was a boondoggle of a wet job.

Everybody knows Dubai has the best duty free shop in the Gulf and the place is loaded with Russian hookers.

[joe brand]

Sarkozy's comment is strange, and the assumptions underlying it have always baffled me. It's really evil to kill a bad guy close up -- that's murder! -- but okay to bomb whole neighborhoods where your enemies might be, because that's war.

Dead bad guy, less killing overall, no dead innocents -- that sounds like a better solution to me. My vote is always for "the least amount of killing that can be managed."

[Pirouz]

Hats off to Dubai law enforcement. The ongoing investigation is far more impressive than the actual crime- which is the way it should be.

[J]

It's soooo sad how arrogant the Israelis are towards their Arab neighbors in particular and Gentiles in general. The Arabs are smarter than the Israelis, and the Israelis don't have enough brains to realize it. The Arabs can spot an Israeli in an Arab crowd while the Israeli thinks he/she is blending in. LOL.

[mo]

Col.,
Theres some chatter that the reason for the large number of agents exposed is that the ruler was so angered by the hit, he ordered the whole station to be exposed.

Either way, the Israelis have definitely done Hizballah a favor.

If or when they take their promised revenge for the Mughniyeh killing, they can be equaly "ambiguous" in their response and enough of a question will exist so as to blacken or dampen the expected Israeli response.

[kassandra]

Many years ago there was a book "By Way of Deception", which had something to say about the Mossad. And the conclusion there was the same as the Colonel's. Seems like nothing has changed, except that then the Mossad relied heavily on sympathetic "helpers" in foreign countries (who might volunteer their passports, for instance). Now that they have more money, the operations expand commensurate with funds available.
The Mossad and Israelis and their supporters in general should read more Greek tragedies. It was always hubris that finally did the hero in.

[Dan M]

@ Daddy warbucks
... and Thai, and Filipino, and Belarussian, and etc...etc...

There may be something to the boondoggle theory (lots of bosses and their pets wanted in on the fun).

[Mary]

Hmm. Australia is abstaining on the Goldstone resolution at the UN today instead of voting against and has opened an investigation on its citizens who were spying for Israel.

[William R. Cumming]

Eventually with passage of time covert assassinations will be the rule, not the exception world-wide. Note that the prohibition in US ops is an executive order issued by Ford I believe with no citation to authority except for President's implied powers. Associate Justice Jack in the so-called STEEL SEIZURE case during Korean War in a brilliant dissent argued for NO implied powers in the President. Trouble with that is the Louisiana Purchase accomplished by Jefferson still stands as the leading use of implied Presidential Powers. Where do I come out? TO the extent that assassination might be necessary purhaps the definition of that word helps! Go to OED for help.

[Ali]

I'm confused about the passports. Various reports refer to them as 'fraudulent' or 'forged.'

According to Dubai authorities the passports were authentic, which implies they are fraudulent (assuming 'fraudulent' means they are authentic, but obtained nuder false pretense?).

Another thing - the Israelis have used foreign passports in this manner in the past, why do you suppose they have not used American passports - or perhaps they have, just never been caught?

[Adam L Silverman]

Ali: My understanding from following the reporting on this is that the passports themselves are authentic or accurate with the exception of the pictures - those have been changed to match up with the operatives using them. In the initial reporting several of the British citizens in Israel, including the woman whose passport was used, provided information that there had been burglaries at their residences and that they could document their whereabouts for the last six months or so. The initial British response, like that of all the other affected countries, was outrage, however, it has recently been reported that British Intelligence may have been informed about the use of the passports, which has itself raised a new hue and cry in the UK. Finally, and unfortunately, Fox News ran the names on several of the passports during their reporting on this on this past Tuesday night. They put up the pictures that were used by the operatives with the passports, unfortunately what this has now down is put several people who, at least at this point appear to be real victims here, in the limelight by broadcasting their names. Given the way these things are handled, they're all likely to wind up on watch lists as a result. (As for watching Fox News: I was at the gym, its always on along with CNN and CNBC - I try not to yell at the screen it upsets the other people working out... I did get them to eventually change it to the Olympic hockey though).

[Dan M]

Ali --
When the first batch of passport images were released, the Irish at least and I think the british said that the serial numbers weren't right. I.e. non-perfect forgeries.

At least one of the passports, a german one, appears to have been obtained using the birth certificate/old residency documents for a Jew whose father fled nazi germany (i.e. obtained from the german's fraudulently).

Some of them appear to be perfect or near-perfect. I've seen the word "cloned" used to refer to these. (i.e. perhaps obtained as the german one was, or perhaps master forgeries).

All my infomation is from wire/newspaper reports i've read in the past week, so take it for what that's worth.

[bourbon]

Col. Lang,

Dubai is Iran’s offshore business center and backdoor to the West for technology and nuclear proliferation. I would imagine that monitoring and/or penetrating this activity would be high priority for Israeli intelligence.

Further, I had the impression that Dubai was probably laissez-faire when it came to its espionage laws and the activity of foreign intelligence services – like an Austria in the Middle East. Just so long as they don’t start assassinating each other in the nice parts of town.

If there is some truth to these assumptions; why would Israel risk upsetting the locals which would undermine the of monitoring Iranian proliferation?

[eakens]

Ali,

Congressmen and Senators don't get involved in these types of operations....

[Fred Strack]

Not content with fake identities Isreal used identity theft to make a covert action? Sounds like a bad Hitchcock spy thriller. I wonder how much was rung up on the fake credit cards (or did they steal the real ones, too?)and will the real passport holders now be on everyone's no fly list forever? Try proving that you are innocent if you get caught in this dragnet. Catch 22 and Gitmo both come to mind.

As to assassination, it sure kills people but it hasn't killed any of the underlying ideas or problems.

[N. M. Salamon]

it appears that Iran was more successful in her endevour regarding "terrorism" than Israel in Dubai, the case being: Abdolmalek Rigi, the leader of Jundallah terrorist group.

[Clifford Kiracofe]

For context, new book just out per Israel:

Stephen C. Pelletiere, Israel and the Second Iraq War The Influence of the Likud (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC CLIO, 2010)

Additional analytical questions/requirements would seem to include:

1. What role does Israel play in Anglo-Zionist geopolitics?

2. What role does Israel play with respect to the activities of international organized crime? For example "Russian" organized crime conducted by Russians of Jewish background and "American" organized crime conducted by Americans of Jewish background? By extension, what is the nature of the nexus between Russian, US, and Israeli organized crime?

3. To what extent is Israel "sovereign"? Is it merely the tool of transnational cosmopolitan interests?

and so on...

[walrus]

You've made the local news Col. Lang. I also have to ask, considering the numbers of Israelis involved, if you think this operation might have been a bungled kidnapping attempt?

"Dubai hit squad underestimated police: expert

By Ashley Hall

Updated 7 hours 53 minutes ago

A former top level US intelligence official says the assassination in Dubai of a Hamas operative has all the hallmarks of the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad.

He believes the Israeli operatives badly bungled the job because they underestimated the competency of the Dubai police."

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/02/26/2831801.htm?section=justin

[curious]

Another thing - the Israelis have used foreign passports in this manner in the past, why do you suppose they have not used American passports - or perhaps they have, just never been caught?
Posted by: Ali | 26 February 2010 at 09:51 AM

Even if they use american passport, they would have supressed the news by now. Dubai is still in good term with US and aipac runs state dept. so. But dubai vs. Israel with a palestinian leader dead? they can't possibly not do something.

The question for US would be, does the state dept. knew and has a hand in this high profile assassination. (if not, why not? failure of intel. If yes, who is going to fix the damaged standing in arab world?) Same question for UK. How can they let so many UK pasport being used in such way? (obviously they let this happen, they can't possibly say they know nothing without admitting the entire passport system is broken.)

I think some of those passport isn't forged/not the person. Some of them are who they are. (faking german passport? Israel ain't such good buddy to the german yet.)

PS. yes passport rfid can be forged. blank can be purchased.

---------

They are already running to mommie and try to drag US asking for help. pathetic.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1152409.html

But Dubai has several masks. It helps Iran, but behind its back it provides the United States with an opportunity to gather intelligence about that country. The U.S. Consulate in Dubai also operates as a station for gathering information and enlisting agents. A few years ago the U.S. State Department wanted to close the consulate, but the CIA succeeded in convincing it to leave it open and even to boost the number of employees so that it could handle the hundreds and perhaps thousands of Iranians who come to request visas.

It's not only the U.S. intelligence services that love Dubai: The tremendous scope of commerce and the large number of companies and foreign agencies there are an excellent cover and an appropriate disguise for any city of spies.

----

Anybody watching Euro/europe politics? something big is going down. swirling around the net is the hedge fund group is going to attack and bring down euro.

This on top of Spain proposing Palestinian independence, Merkel allowing neo nazi rally and excluding settlement produce from import tax exemption. The neocon and zionists are not going to sit. They have to attack. The question who is going to help Merkel. She is alone (Sarkozy is a zionist). Obama or China. Whoever help europe owns european favor for next 2 decades.

If europe crash, US lost eurasia control in 5 years or less. if Obama decides to help, the jewish bankers and money people won't be around anymore. They want to crash euro badly.

[arbogast]

I learned recently that "shiksa" is a term of contempt. Pity the poor shiksas.

[Clifford Kiracofe]

arbogast,

consult:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiksa

[jdledell]

One of the interesting facets of this episode is the US connection. The credit cards that were used were issed by a small Iowa bank, MetaBank. However, these were prepaid credit cards issued in connection with a company by the name of Payoneer, headquartered in NYC. This company issues these Metabank cards to international travelers, refilling them as needed and handling the currency conversions.

The interesting connection is the CEO of Payoneer is Yuval Tal, an Israeli and a former special ops commando in the IDF. Payoneer also has an R&D office in TelAviv.

There seems little question that this was a Mossad ops but it is interesting that no American news outlet has publicized this connection and it's obvious violation of US fraud and money laundering statutes.

Either the US was complicit in this assassination or Israel has deeper control of our justice system that anyone imagined.

[J]

Well the blow-back on those nation governments who were passive partners or inadvertent fools (passports) to Mossad's actions.

http://www.news.com.au/national/iris-scanning-for-australian-dubai-visitors/story-e6frfkvr-1225834974052?from=public_rss

Iris scanning for Australian Dubai visitors

AUSTRALIANS traveling to Dubai will have to obtain a visa, be fingerprinted and have an iris scan in the wake of the Mossad hit squad passport scandal.

One of these days, the various and sundry Arab intels are going to get fed up enough to actively go after Mossad. When that day comes watch as Mossad operatives start dropping like flies in the Arab world. And Mossad will have nobody to blame but themselves.