Days into role, new Mossad chief dismisses highly experienced deputy director |
The newly inaugurated director of the Mossad, Roman Gofman, announced on Saturday that he had dismissed the agency’s deputy director, identified only as “Aleph,” in the first major step he has taken to shake up the intelligence agency’s leadership.
In a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office on behalf of the Mossad, Gofman said he was terminating Aleph’s employment as he “seeks to shape the senior leadership team that will accompany him in meeting the goals and challenges facing the organization in the coming years.
Gofman started his role on Tuesday, marking an end to the lengthy legal challenges he faced since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced his nomination in December 2025. In his previous role, he served as Netanyahu’s military secretary.
According to the statement, during his 22 years of service, Aleph was at the forefront of the organization’s operational activity in three different divisions, commanded two of them, and led a series of groundbreaking operations. For his achievements, he was awarded five Israel Security Prizes.
Gofman thanked Aleph for his service, and Aleph wished Gofman success in his role, the statement said.
Aleph was known in the Mossad as a “Bibist” — a supporter of Netanyahu — but also was the preferred candidate of Gofman’s predecessor, David Barnea, to take over the post, a source with knowledge of the details told Channel 12 news.
Gofman ousted Aleph to put an end to the “saga,” the source said.
His decision to dismiss Aleph has been criticized internally, the Ynet news outlet reported, as the new Mossad chief has no intelligence........