Tamir Pardo

Tamir Pardo
תמיר פרדו‎
11th Director of the Mossad
In office
January 1, 2011 – January 5, 2016
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Preceded by Meir Dagan
Succeeded by Yossi Cohen
Personal details
Born 1953
Tel Aviv, Israel
Alma mater Tel Aviv University
Military service
Allegiance Israel Israel
Service/branch Israel Defense Forces
Years of service 1971–present
Battles/wars Operation Entebbe

Tamir Pardo (Hebrew: תמיר פרדו‎; born 1953) is the former Director of the Mossad, taking over the role from Meir Dagan on January 1, 2011. The appointment was announced by Israeli prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on November 29, 2010.[1]

Biography

Pardo was born in Tel Aviv to a family of Turkish and Serbian Jewish origins. At age 18, when he began his compulsory service in the Israel Defense Forces, he volunteered for the paratroopers. He graduated from an officers' course, and later served as a communication officer in the elite special forces unit Sayeret Matkal. He also served in the Shaldag Unit. He was a member of the unit under the command of Yonatan "Yoni" Netanyahu and participated in Operation Entebbe. Netanyahu, elder brother to current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was killed during the operation.

After completing his military service, Pardo joined the Mossad in 1980, and served in entry-level technical positions. He took part in several classified operations, and was awarded the Israel Security Prize three times. He rose through the ranks and eventually became head of the "Keshet" department, responsible for operations, including obtaining electronic intelligence through wiretaps and photographic methods. In 2005, he was in line for promotion to the organization's number 2 position, when another individual was given the job. Mossad Director-General Meir Dagan thereupon lent Pardo to the IDF, where he served as a senior advisor for operations to the Israeli General Staff. He served in this position during the 2006 Lebanon War. After Dagan fired his number 2, he invited Pardo to return to the Mossad and assume the role. Pardo did so in the belief that when Dagan retired, he would be offered the job. However, Dagan's term was extended and he didn't retire when expected. This led Pardo to leave the Mossad, whereupon he went into private business with Israeli Internet gambling entrepreneur Noam Lanir.

Mossad leadership

Israeli media reported that Netanyahu's first candidate for the role of Mossad chief, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries's CEO, retired Major General Shlomo Yanai, was offered the job but turned it down. Of several other candidates, Pardo was the only one to have served in the Mossad. His choice may reflect a wish on the part of Prime Minister Netanyahu to signal continuity by choosing a candidate from within the ranks.[2]

It was anticipated that Pardo would continue the work of his predecessor, Meir Dagan, in attempting to thwart any attempts by the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to build a nuclear weapon.[3]

On August 2, 2011, German news website Spiegel Online published an article named "Mossad Behind Tehran Assassinations, Says Source", claiming receiving information from "an Israeli intelligence source", linking Mossad under Tamir Pardo as its chief to the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Darioush Rezaeinejad in Tehran on July 23, 2011.[4] The report was reprinted by several news agencies, yet without providing additional sources to confirm the information.[5][6][7][8][9][10]

Post–Mossad

In June 2016, the American NGO United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) announced that Pardo had joined the group's Advisory Board.[11] Upon joining, Pardo said, "The leading global powers cannot turn a blind eye to the clear and present dangers the Iranian regime poses to the safety and freedoms of millions of people within their borders and throughout the world."[12]

References

  1. ↑ Melman, Yossi (November 29, 2010). "Who is new Mossad chief Tamir Pardo?". Haaretz. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  2. ↑ Melman, Yossi (November 29, 2010). ראש המוסד הבא תמיר פרדו - מהתפקיד הזוטר ביותר עד לצמרת הארגון [Next Mossad chief Tamir Pardo—from the lowest job to the top of the organization]. Haaretz (in Hebrew). Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  3. ↑ Gross, Tom (December 12, 2010). "Egypt claims Mossad to blame for shark attacks (& details of new Mossad head)". Tom Gross Media. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ Ulrike Putz (August 2, 2011). "Mossad Behind Tehran Assassinations, Says Source". Spiegel Online. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  5. ↑ "'Mossad shot dead' Iranian scientist". The Sydney Morning Herald. AFP. August 2, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  6. ↑ "Israel behind Iran academic hit: Spiegel". PressTV. 1 August 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Mossad behind murder of Iranian scientist". Middle East Online. August 2, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Der Spiegel: Israel killed Iranian". UPI. August 2, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  9. ↑ "Israel's Mossad behind killing of Iranian scientist: report". IBN Live. August 2, 2011. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  10. ↑ Ofer Aderet (August 2, 2011). "Israel's new Mossad chief behind assassination of Iran nuclear scientist". Haaretz. Retrieved August 26, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Former Mossad director joins anti-Iran organization". Ynetnews. 18 June 2016.
  12. ↑ "UANI Expands Global Reach, Deepens Defense and Foreign Policy Expertise with New Advisory Board Members". United Against Nuclear Iran. 16 June 2016.
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