Key Takeaways
1. Mossad's Ruthless Motto: "By Way of Deception, Thou Shalt Do War"
Our motto is: 'By way of deception, thou shalt do war."
The core philosophy. The Mossad operates under a guiding principle that prioritizes deception as a primary tool in its operations. This motto, openly stated to new recruits, sets the tone for the organization's approach to intelligence gathering and special operations, emphasizing cunning and misdirection over direct confrontation.
Justification through threat. This philosophy is rooted in the belief that Israel faces existential threats and must use any means necessary for survival. Recruits are taught that the state's security justifies actions that might otherwise be considered immoral, creating a framework where ethical considerations are secondary to perceived national interest.
Impact on operations. The motto permeates all levels of Mossad activity, from recruitment techniques to major international operations. It encourages a mindset where manipulation, misdirection, and the exploitation of vulnerabilities are standard practice, shaping the character and methods of its operatives.
2. Intense Recruitment and Brainwashing Process
The whole system involves taking the proper candidates to begin with, then over time, through a well-orchestrated course of propaganda brainwashing, molding them.
Rigorous selection. The recruitment process is lengthy and intense, involving extensive psychological testing, interviews, physicals, and polygraph tests. Thousands are screened for a handful of spots, seeking candidates who are willing, adaptable, and possess specific, often hidden, talents.
Molding the mindset. Once selected, cadets undergo a transformative training designed to reshape their perceptions and loyalties. Through constant reinforcement and exposure to the organization's ideology, recruits are molded into operatives who prioritize the Mossad's goals above personal beliefs or external moral codes.
Creating loyalty and ruthlessness. The training fosters a sense of elite belonging and intense loyalty to the organization. It also cultivates a necessary ruthlessness, preparing operatives to make difficult, often morally ambiguous, decisions in the field without hesitation, viewing targets and even allies through a purely utilitarian lens.
3. The Power of Sayanim: A Global Network of Jewish Helpers
You have at your disposal a nonrisk recruitment system that actually gives you a pool of millions of Jewish people to tap from outside your own borders.
Volunteer support network. The Mossad relies heavily on a unique system of "sayanim," Jewish volunteers living outside Israel who provide logistical support without being formal agents or privy to classified information. This network is crucial due to the Mossad's small size.
Diverse services provided. Sayanim offer a wide range of assistance, leveraging their civilian professions to aid operations. This includes:
- Renting cars or apartments without standard documentation
- Providing medical treatment without reporting to authorities
- Offering financial services or cash on demand
- Setting up temporary business fronts or addresses
Ethical concerns and risks. While presented as low-risk for the sayanim, the system raises ethical questions about potentially compromising Jewish communities abroad if exposed. The Mossad's view is often pragmatic, prioritizing operational needs over potential diaspora repercussions.
4. Operational Methods: Covers, Security, and Psychological Manipulation
The course in reality was a big school for scam — a school that taught people to be con artists for their country.
Mastering deception. Operatives are trained extensively in creating and maintaining cover stories, often adopting multiple identities and professions. Versatility is key, allowing katsas to adapt to different situations and targets seamlessly.
Rigorous security protocols. Personal and operational security (APAM) is paramount, drilled repeatedly through realistic exercises. Techniques include:
- Detecting surveillance (route routines, motionless following)
- Securing meeting places and safe houses
- Using coded communications and dead drops
- Handling documentation and false passports
Exploiting human vulnerabilities. Recruitment often targets individuals based on "hooks" like money, emotion (revenge, ideology), or sex. Operatives are taught to identify these vulnerabilities and manipulate individuals gradually, pushing them down a path of compromise.
5. Internal Rivalries and Lack of Accountability
An intelligence agency with no supervisory body is like a loose cannon, only with a difference. It's a loose cannon with malice aforethought.
Departmental conflicts. Significant rivalries exist between different Mossad departments, particularly Tsomet (recruitment) and Tevel (liaison). These internal power struggles can hinder cooperation, lead to poor decisions, and even jeopardize operations.
Lack of external oversight. The Mossad operates with virtually no public or political accountability. Unlike intelligence agencies in other democracies, there is no formal legislative committee scrutinizing its activities, allowing internal politics and personal agendas to influence decisions without consequence.
Consequences of unchecked power. This lack of oversight fosters an environment where personal advancement and internal rivalries can override national interest. It leads to questionable ethical compromises, wasted resources, and potentially harmful actions that damage Israel's reputation and relationships.
6. Controversial Operations: Assassinations and Manipulation
We were to do what was good for us and screw everybody else, because they wouldn't be helping us.
Targeted killings. The Mossad employs assassination units (kidon) to eliminate perceived enemies, often without trial, based on secret execution lists approved by the Prime Minister. This is justified as national self-defense against those with "blood on their hands."
Manipulating allies. The Mossad actively manipulates friendly intelligence agencies and governments for its own gain. This includes:
- Feeding selective or misleading information (e.g., to the CIA, Italian police)
- Exploiting liaison relationships for operational advantage
- Using allies to cover up Mossad actions or failures
Questionable funding sources. The organization engages in activities like arms dealing and potentially drug trade involvement (as suggested in the Panama incident) to generate revenue, operating outside conventional financial channels and raising serious ethical concerns.
7. Operation Sphinx: Sabotage and Recruitment in the Nuclear Race
The fish had swallowed the hook.
Targeting Iraq's nuclear program. Concerned about Iraq's nuclear ambitions, the Mossad launched a multi-year operation to delay or stop the project. This involved intelligence gathering, sabotage, and recruitment.
Recruiting through manipulation. A key success was the recruitment of Iraqi scientist Butrus Eben Halim. Using a combination of:
- Surveillance and exploitation of personal vulnerabilities (unhappy marriage, desire for money)
- Elaborate cover stories (wealthy businessman)
- Psychological manipulation (creating fear of the CIA)
Sabotage and assassination. The operation included sabotaging reactor components in France and assassinating key Iraqi personnel like physicist Yahia El Meshad and a hooker who could expose the operation, demonstrating the Mossad's willingness to use lethal force.
8. The Strella Missile Plot and Internal Feuds
But Kauly's persistence would save Golda Meir's life.
Black September threat. Following the Munich massacre, the PLO faction Black September targeted Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Golda Meir. A plot was devised to shoot down her plane in Rome using Strella missiles.
Intelligence failures and rivalries. Despite warnings, internal Mossad rivalries and misjudgments hindered the response. Sloppy security by katsas exposed an agent, and a feud between station heads in Rome and Milan delayed crucial information sharing.
Averted disaster. Against internal resistance, a meticulous katsa, Shai Kauly, pieced together clues and forced action. This led to the discovery and confiscation of the missiles just before Meir's arrival, highlighting how individual persistence can overcome systemic flaws, but also the high cost of internal dysfunction.
9. Carlos the Terrorist: A Product of Mossad Inaction
Carlos became famous that day.
Recruiting a key source. Following the assassination of a Black September leader, the Mossad recruited his liaison, Moukharbel, gaining invaluable intelligence on European terrorist networks, including the rising figure of Carlos.
Hesitation and rivalry cost lives. Despite knowing Carlos was dangerous and having opportunities to neutralize him or expose him to French police, internal Mossad debates and rivalries prevented decisive action. Tsomet wanted to use the information, Tevel wanted to control its release for leverage.
Tragic consequences. This inaction led directly to a botched police raid where Carlos killed three French policemen and his own liaison, Moukharbel. The incident propelled Carlos to international notoriety and demonstrated how internal Mossad politics could have deadly external repercussions.
10. Operation Moses: Covert Rescue and Costly Exposure
All the years it was hard to leave. . . . Now, with half of our families still there, they publish everything. How could they do a thing like that?
Rescuing Ethiopian Jews. The Mossad undertook a large-scale, covert operation to rescue thousands of starving Ethiopian Jews (Falashas) from Sudanese refugee camps, bringing them to Israel.
Elaborate cover operation. A key part of the rescue involved setting up a fake tourist resort on the Sudanese Red Sea coast as a front for transporting Falashas by sea and air. This required bribing officials, smuggling equipment, and using Israeli navy and civilian personnel under deep cover.
Exposure and its cost. The operation was prematurely exposed by a talkative Israeli official and a newspaper, forcing its abrupt end. While thousands were saved, several thousand more were left behind, highlighting the devastating human cost of breaking operational secrecy, even for a seemingly noble cause.
11. Operating "Above" the Rules: The Secret Al Unit in the US
Pollard was not Mossad, but many others actively spying, recruiting, organizing, and carrying out covert activities — mainly in New York and Washington, which they refer to as their 'playground' — do belong to a special, super-secret division of the Mossad called simply Al, Hebrew for 'above' or 'on top.'
Clandestine US operations. Despite official denials, the Mossad operates a highly secretive unit called Al within the United States, primarily in New York and Washington. This unit operates outside the Israeli embassy and uses American passports, violating standard Mossad rules.
Intelligence gathering and influence. Al's main focus is gathering intelligence on the Arab world and the PLO within the US, but it also collects information on American political and military activities relevant to Israel. They leverage social networks and recruit sources within US institutions.
Political fallout. Al's activities have had significant political repercussions, most notably contributing to the forced resignation of UN Ambassador Andrew Young by exposing his unauthorized meeting with the PLO. This incident strained US-Israeli relations and highlighted the risks of clandestine operations in a close ally's territory.
12. Disillusionment and Departure: The Price of Questioning the System
What disappointed me was that I'd thought I was entering Israel's Olympus, but actually found myself in Sodom and Gomorrah.
Shattered idealism. The author joined the Mossad with deep Zionist idealism, viewing it as an elite organization dedicated to protecting Israel. His experience revealed a world of moral compromise, internal corruption, ruthless pragmatism, and a disregard for human life that shattered this vision.
Questioning the methods. Witnessing operations driven by internal rivalries, personal agendas, and a "screw everybody else" mentality led the author to question the organization's ethics and effectiveness. His attempts to raise concerns were met with hostility and ostracization.
Forced exit. The author's refusal to conform and his willingness to challenge the system, particularly after a personal incident involving a powerful insider, made him a liability. He was effectively forced out, facing threats and retaliation for his dissent.
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FAQ
What is By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky about?
- Insider’s account of Mossad: The book is a firsthand exposé by Victor Ostrovsky, a former Mossad officer, revealing the inner workings, recruitment, training, and operations of Israel’s secret intelligence agency.
- Focus on covert operations: It details Mossad’s espionage, sabotage, and assassination missions, including high-profile operations like the campaign against Iraq’s nuclear program and retaliation for the Munich massacre.
- Personal journey and critique: Ostrovsky shares his own experiences, highlighting the psychological and moral challenges faced by agents, and offers a critical perspective on Mossad’s internal culture and ethics.
- Historical and political context: The narrative intertwines Mossad’s activities with major Middle Eastern and global events, providing context for Israel’s security concerns and covert actions.
Why should I read By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Rare insider perspective: The book offers unprecedented access to the secretive world of Mossad, with details unavailable in most other sources.
- Understanding intelligence work: Readers gain insight into espionage techniques, recruitment, and the realities of covert operations, challenging popular myths about intelligence agencies.
- Critical ethical reflection: Ostrovsky encourages readers to question the morality and consequences of intelligence work, especially regarding accountability and oversight.
- Historical significance: The book provides valuable context on how Mossad’s actions have shaped Middle Eastern politics and global security.
What are the key takeaways from By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Mossad’s power and secrecy: The agency operates with little oversight, wielding significant influence both within Israel and internationally.
- Moral ambiguity of espionage: Intelligence work often involves deception, manipulation, and violence, raising complex ethical questions.
- Internal politics and rivalries: Mossad’s effectiveness can be undermined by internal power struggles and resistance to questioning authority.
- Impact on global events: Mossad’s covert actions have had far-reaching effects on international relations, security, and the perception of Israel.
How does Victor Ostrovsky describe Mossad recruitment and training in By Way of Deception?
- Rigorous selection process: Candidates undergo psychological testing, medical exams, polygraphs, and interviews to identify those suited for intelligence work.
- Intense training academy: Trainees face a multi-year program covering surveillance, security, weapons, cover stories, and operational tactics, often through harsh simulations.
- Emphasis on deception: Mastery of cover identities and the art of deception is central, preparing agents for work in hostile environments.
- Psychological conditioning: Training includes stress tests and indoctrination to foster loyalty, adaptability, and the ability to handle moral ambiguities.
What are the main Mossad operations detailed in By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Operation Sphinx: Mossad’s campaign to sabotage Iraq’s nuclear program, involving espionage, recruitment of scientists, and sabotage leading to the Osirak reactor airstrike.
- Black September retaliation: Targeted assassinations and psychological warfare against terrorists responsible for the Munich massacre.
- Operation Moses: The covert rescue of Ethiopian Jews from Sudan, using a secret diving resort and airlifts.
- Other notable missions: Foiled assassination attempts, sabotage of PLO arms shipments, and technical espionage like the “Belgian Table” operation.
How does By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky portray Mossad’s internal culture and ethics?
- Moral ambiguity and ruthlessness: Loyalty to the mission often overrides personal ethics, with agents engaging in manipulation, blackmail, and even sexual exploitation.
- Sexual politics and exploitation: Sexual relationships are used as tools for recruitment and control, with widespread affairs among staff.
- Lack of accountability: Mossad operates with minimal oversight, leading to unchecked power and internal corruption.
- Survival mentality: Agents are trained to prioritize their own survival and the agency’s goals, sometimes at the expense of innocents.
What are the key methods of espionage and recruitment in By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Use of sayanim: Mossad relies on Jewish volunteers worldwide for logistical support, such as housing and document procurement, without making them formal agents.
- Psychological manipulation: Recruitment exploits money, ideology, sex, and emotional vulnerabilities, often gradually increasing a recruit’s complicity.
- Elaborate cover stories: Agents develop detailed identities supported by forged documents and business fronts to operate undetected.
- Advanced surveillance: Techniques include bugs, dead-letter boxes, and motionless following to ensure operational security.
What are the main departments and roles within Mossad according to By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Tsomet (Recruitment): Handles agent recruitment and human intelligence gathering.
- Komemiute (Combatants): Manages deep-cover operatives and assassination teams (kidon) for covert operations.
- Kaisarut (Liaison): Maintains relationships with foreign intelligence agencies and manages arms deals.
- PAHA (Hostile Sabotage): Focuses on counter-terrorism and monitoring hostile organizations.
- Yarid and Neviot: Specialize in security, surveillance, and technical operations like break-ins and bug installations.
What is the significance of Operation Sphinx in By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Targeting Iraqi nuclear ambitions: Operation Sphinx aimed to sabotage Iraq’s nuclear reactor project through espionage and sabotage.
- Recruitment of key scientists: Mossad used elaborate deception to recruit Iraqi nuclear scientist Butrus Eben Halim.
- Sabotage and assassinations: The operation included planting explosives, stealing documents, and assassinating figures involved in the nuclear program.
- Culmination in airstrike: Intelligence and sabotage efforts led to the 1981 Israeli airstrike that destroyed the Osirak reactor.
How does By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky describe Mossad’s use of technology and computers?
- Centralized intelligence database: Mossad maintains a vast computerized system tracking over 1.5 million individuals and their global contacts.
- Advanced coding and security: Communications use complex double coding to prevent interception and decoding by adversaries.
- Operational support: Computers assist in recruitment, surveillance, and planning, but agents must still rely on field skills and judgment.
- Limitations and vulnerabilities: The system can be overloaded or compromised, as illustrated by a trainee’s query that crashed the database.
What is the “Al” unit in Mossad, and what role does it play according to By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky?
- Secret U.S.-based division: The Al unit operates mainly within the United States, unknown to most Mossad employees.
- Espionage and recruitment: It gathers intelligence on Arab countries, the PLO, and U.S. political figures, often using American passports.
- High-risk operations: Al katsas work without diplomatic immunity, making their missions especially dangerous.
- Controversial activities: The unit’s existence contradicts official claims that Mossad does not operate in the U.S.
What are the best quotes from By Way of Deception by Victor Ostrovsky and what do they mean?
- “By way of deception, thou shalt do war.” This Mossad motto encapsulates the agency’s reliance on deception as a fundamental tool.
- “May I read about you in the paper.” A curse among agents, reflecting the danger and disgrace of public exposure.
- “No one will escape the long arm of Israeli justice.” Quoted from Golda Meir, symbolizing Mossad’s relentless pursuit of enemies.
- “The Mossad is destroying Israel by manipulating power.” Ostrovsky’s warning about the dangers of unchecked intelligence operations.
- “No detail is too small.” Emphasizes the critical importance of meticulousness in intelligence work.
Review Summary
By Way of Deception is a controversial exposé of Mossad operations by former agent Victor Ostrovsky. Reviews are mixed, with some praising its insider revelations and others questioning its credibility. Many find the training details fascinating but lose interest in later chapters. The book is seen as outdated but still relevant, offering insights into intelligence agencies' tactics. Critics argue it may be self-serving or propaganda. Overall, readers find it a gripping yet potentially biased account of Mossad's secretive world, raising ethical questions about intelligence operations.
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