Israeli Media: KGB Had Many Spies in Israel

An investigation by a journalist specializing in espionage and intelligence in an Israeli newspaper claims that the KGB, the Soviet Union's secret intelligence and security agency, successfully recruited a number of Israelis of Russian and Eastern European descent. Dr. Ronen Bergman, a journalist for Yedioth Ahronoth and author of books on Iran and espionage in the Middle East, claims that many operatives of Russian-Israeli nationality worked for the KGB. This investigation was published in the Friday edition of the newspaper on November 7, titled 'In Service of the Motherland, Russia.' Recently, an Israeli media report claimed that Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, was a KGB spy since his studies in the Soviet Union; following the broadcast of this report by Israel's Channel One, while Palestinians reacted strongly, some Israeli media hinted that if Soviet documents were ever revealed, it would show which Israeli officials had also served the KGB. Now, the Israeli intelligence reporter has published his investigative report; Bergman states that he began this research based on several documents obtained from the KGB. The intelligence reporter claims that although some of these individuals are no longer alive, 'there are still individuals working for the Russian secret intelligence agency in Israel.' Bergman notes that the major success of the KGB and also the GRU, the Soviet military intelligence agency, in employing individuals to further their goals in Israel was during a time when Israel's internal security service, Shabak, did not have the current power to closely monitor all citizens of the country. The report emphasizes that Vasily Mitrokhin, a former high-ranking KGB official, had 'many classified documents' regarding the presence of 'Russian operatives' in Israel. Mitrokhin fled to the West in the 1990s and, according to Yedioth Ahronoth, brought with him 'a treasure trove of documents that bore the heaviest classification stamp.' Due to his high position in the KGB, he was able to copy many documents and keep them without raising suspicion. His documents reached London, and according to Yedioth Ahronoth, from there British security agencies shared information about the deployment of KGB spies among Israeli residents with Israeli security agencies. Mitrokhin stated before his death that when he realized the truths about the massacres and repressions carried out by the Soviet Union, his conscience would not let him rest. Mitrokhin, who loved watching ballet performances, confessed that at the request of the KGB, he arranged a road accident for Rudolf Nureyev, the famous ballet dancer, because Nureyev had fled the Soviet Union to the West. Bergman writes, 'An Israeli intelligence official was shocked when he first received this information.' According to this report, these documents led to the exposure of the names and activities of several other intelligence operatives that the KGB had employed in the West. The reporter states that several Knesset members, officials from intelligence agencies, media operatives, and individuals in the Israeli army had assisted KGB objectives. The report states that some Russian engineers who immigrated to Israel under the guise of being Jewish worked on 'secret projects' in Israel but transferred the 'most classified' security and intelligence secrets of these projects to Soviet security agencies. Thousands of Soviet citizens came to Israel motivated by the fact that a close relative of theirs was Jewish, in two waves; one in the 1970s and the other in the 1990s. However, since the 1950s, shortly after the establishment of Israel, Russian Jews began to immigrate to Israel, and KGB and GRU infiltrators were 'planted' among them. Yedioth Ahronoth writes that Soviet intelligence agencies undoubtedly employed many of these Russians, and some of them may still be serving Russia, and if individuals are still doing this, they are certainly the most cunning among them. A former Shabak member told the newspaper that some immigrants who were recruited in the 1970s surrendered after suspicions arose about them; there were also others whom the KGB no longer contacted, but it is likely that a third group exists that, if alive, has not been apprehended to this day. Ziv Avni, who worked for Mossad and the Israeli Foreign Ministry, was arrested, tried, and convicted in 1956. Levi Lucian Levi, who was employed in Israeli security agencies, was arrested in 1957. Professor Kurt Sita, a migrant doctor from Czechoslovakia and a professor at the Technion University, was employed at the Dimona nuclear reactor in Israel but was arrested and imprisoned in 1960. The most significant of these operatives was 'Yisrael Bar,' who worked in the office of David Ben-Gurion, Israel's first prime minister, and was arrested in 1961, sentenced to 15 years in prison, and died in prison or committed suicide. Professor Avraham Marcus Kleinberg and his wife Wanda, scientists at the Weizmann Institute, were arrested in 1983, and Professor Kleinberg was sentenced to 20 years in prison for serious espionage charges. Colonel Shimon Levinson, a senior member of the army and responsible for Mossad in Ethiopia, voluntarily worked for the KGB from 1983 and was arrested in 1991, sentenced to 12 years in prison for 'serious harm to Israel's security.' According to this report, the KGB had previously trained Jews for its purposes, anticipating that they would be employed in important positions upon immigrating to Israel; for example, in Mitrokhin's documents, operatives the KGB relied on were referred to by the nicknames 'Louis,' 'Jimmy,' and 'Tamuz.' Later, 'Tamuz' became one of the important journalists in the Middle East, but according to Yedioth Ahronoth, Shabak identified him and turned him into a 'counter-spy.' According to this report, one of the highest-ranking agents the KGB had recruited was a senior officer from the Israeli army's general staff. Bergman states that since these individuals have passed away, he has attempted to obtain evidence regarding the movements of these 'operatives' with KGB agents at the time through conversations with family members, friends, and acquaintances. Ephraim Sneh, the son of Moshe Sneh, recalled that his father held meetings every Thursday night at home with individuals described as 'diplomats from Bulgaria,' and they would smoke cigars and converse, but he 'strongly' denies that these 'diplomats' were intermediaries between Moshe Sneh and the KGB. Moshe Sneh was considered one of the prominent Israeli politicians at the time. His son, Ephraim Sneh, later served as a minister in Labor Party governments and also as Deputy Minister of Defense for a term. Other family members also strongly denied the connections of the mentioned individuals or stated that they were 'shocked' to link them to the Soviet Union or Russia. Yedioth Ahronoth also mentioned other immigrants as examples of spies for the KGB: Eliezer Granot, a Knesset representative and later Israel's ambassador to South Africa; Yaakov Riftin, a Knesset representative; Yaakov Verdi, a senior official in advancing secret relations with neighbors; and Ms. Aviva Stein, a journalist.