Israel’s Intelligence gathering and analysis for the target assassination of Baha Abu al-Ata (2019)

ABSTRACT

On 12 November 2019 Baha Abu al-Ata, a leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza was targeted assassinated by Israel. Intelligence was the driver of the operation – information and data were the components of intelligence gathering enabling informed decision-making via defence and security analysis. There was effective co-ordination and co-operation between the civilian government, the Israel Defense Force’s Units Skylark, Moran, 504, 8200 and 9900, and the Israel Security Agency. Policy and technicalities were integrated through civil–military relations. The methodology used six sets of different types of intelligence gathering, analysis and risk assessment that were separate yet simultaneously were asking: why, who, when, where, how (what weapon), and assessing repercussions.

KEYWORDS:

• Target assassination
• Baha Abu al-Ata
• Palestinian Islamic Jihad
• Gaza
• Israel Defense Force
• intelligence methodology

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

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47 Captain Itamar, ‘Unit 9900’ (paper presented at Intelligence Workshop, University of Haifa, Israel May 25, 2020).

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52 Captain Maya, ‘Local Analysis’ (paper presented at Intelligence Workshop, University of Haifa, Israel July 3, 2020).

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55 Baha Abu al-Ata, Counter Extremism Project Website, https://www.counterextremism.com/extremists/baha-abu-al-ata.

56 Netanyahu’s Remarks at the Joint Statement with IDF Chief-of-Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi and ISA Director Nadav Argaman at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, November 12, 2020, Video News Conference, https://www.facebook.com/IsraeliPM/videos/818369418618625/?__tn__=-R.

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63 Major Eliram, Limited War Presentation, Workshop, The Technion, May 5, 2020.

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65 Josef Federman, Zeina Karam, Albert Aji, and Samy Magdy, ‘Israel Kills Islamic Jihad Leader, Setting off Fierce Clash’, Associated Press, 12 November 2019, https://accesswdun.com/print/2019/11/850198.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Glen Segell

Glen Segell (DPhil, FRGS) is Visiting Professor and Research Fellow in the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State, South Africa and Research Fellow at the Ezri Center for Iran & Gulf States Research, University of Haifa, Israel. He was born in South Africa and educated to a BA and MA at the Hebrew University Jerusalem and to a DPhil at the University of Oxford. He specialises in intelligence studies, civil–military relations, and strategic communications where he also consults as an expert for NATO. He has held teaching and research positions in the United Kingdom, Israel, and South Africa. He holds the rank of Brigadier-General (Reserves). He was involved in active intelligence and offense operations in Iraq, Kuwait, Sudan, and Libya. He has published a substantial number of peer reviewed articles and books.