A Different Ending to the Case that Tore Apart the IDF
In his weekly column, Amir Rappaport reveals an alternative scenario to the Elor Azaria affair. Also: the implications of the leaked CIA hacking tools and the battle behind the IMI privatization process
Amir Rapaport
| 09/03/2017
PM Netanyahu with the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eizenkot and former Minister of Defense Ya'alon (Photo: Kobi Gideon / GPO)
In a week when former Minister of Defense and IDF Chief of Staff, Moshe Ya'alon has described publicly, in minute detail, the chain of events of the Elor Azaria affair, on the occasion of the establishment of his new political party, an alternative scenario could have easily come to mind.
According to this alternative scenario, the commander of the IDF Judea & Samaria Division and the general commanding IDF Central Command would have handled the incident promptly, using a "command" procedure where Azaria would have been sentenced to 60 days in military prison by a military disciplinary court. According to this alternative scenario, the Chief of Staff and Minister of Defense would never have intervened and the affair would have died in the media relatively quickly. This scenario never materialized, but it could have taken place, as we reveal here for the first time.
As it turns out, the commander of the IDF Judea & Samaria Division, Brig. Gen. Lior Carmelli, and the general commanding IDF Central Command, Maj. Gen. Roni Numa, did believe very strongly that the appropriate procedure would be a disciplinary hearing for Elor Azaria, but failed to convince the Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot. Carmelli had reached that conclusion as early as after the initial debriefing on the scene in Hebron, and submitted his recommendation to the general commanding IDF Central Command. Maj. Gen. Numa, who was strongly convinced that Elor Azaria should be sent to jail straight away, without any time-consuming legal proceedings, contacted the Chief of Staff and asked for his approval.
This is where the similarity between the alternative scenario and reality ends. The Chief of Staff, who was actually viewing the video clip of the incident on his computer screen at the time, rejected the recommendation forthright, calling instead for a comprehensive investigation by Military Police. The Minister of Defense at the time, Moshe Ya'alon, held a similar view, as did Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at least initially (until he changed his mind "pursuant to public opinion surveys," as Ya'alon has claimed earlier this week).
The bottom line: far removed from the scenario of a disciplinary hearing, the Azaria affair grew even more complex earlier this week, when an appeal was submitted to the Supreme Military Court – by the military prosecution on the one hand, and by Azaria's legal counsel on the other hand. Now the affair is guaranteed to go on tearing the IDF and Israeli society apart, by uncovering an additional dose of secret recordings and by spilling out buckets of slime in the course of the appeal (a small portion of which will be conducted in court, while the lion's share will be conducted in the media).
A Lethal Leak
The amazing revelation by Wikileaks – the so-called cyber manual of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), made the headlines justifiably, but two important aspects of this story have not been emphasized sufficiently.
Starting with the substance, the document leaked to the Internet, which appears to professionals to be perfectly authentic, is, in fact, a manual to all intents and purposes – a user's manual for anyone wishing to become a cyber attacker through self-learning. Particularly embarrassing is the fact that a sensitive cyber-related document has leaked to the web this time. Admittedly, however, after previous leaks from the most sensitive agencies of the USA, this recent leak is conceived as an almost "natural" phenomenon.
Let's move on to the implications of this leak. In this context, it is important to note that the document has revealed, for the first time and in an unequivocal manner, the fact that the USA regards cyber not just as a means for collecting intelligence (e.g. through innocent-looking TV sets, used as remotely-operated intelligence sensors), but also as an elimination weapon that is as lethal as a missile or at least as a pistol.
I intend, naturally, to the revelation that the Agency has been preparing for the possibility of taking control of vehicles remotely. From this point on, there are no limits to one's imagination. Let's assume the organization wants to eliminate someone without leaving a trace. All that is required is issuing a computer command to a vehicle that would disrupt its braking system and cause a certain accident. If the subject is not killed in the accident, he may be eliminated in the hospital, by remotely manipulating the oxygen supply system or some other vital system. Even if this revelation only involves some preliminary ideas of the CIA, it is by all means a dramatic development.
Also, the recent revelation could, naturally, affect the credibility of US-made products, but more importantly – it will change the cyber market in the coming months, with regard to offensive products (that are less well-known) and especially with regard to defensive products. The working assumption of all of the "players" right now is that a defensive solution will be provided soon for the "beyond imagination" tools revealed on the Internet, like spy TV sets, and that on the other hand – intelligence agencies will do their best to find new creative "tools" as soon as possible.
Privatization or a Stock Exchange Issue?
Much remains to be discovered regarding the clash between Minister of Defense Avigdor Lieberman and the Director of the Government Companies Authority, Uri Yogev, at least for the time being.
In this week's episode, Minister of Defense Lieberman announced that he was freezing the privatization of the government-owned company IMI. Numerous companies competing for the acquisition of IMI have thus far invested millions in this process, which is extremely important to Uri Yogev. One of the leading investors in this process was Elbit Systems, which has now emerged as the last remaining bidder. The State has also invested substantial funds in severance pay for the employees laid off, and a new company, Tomer, was established to keep possession of some highly confidential activities that cannot be sold.
According to one interpretation, Lieberman's decision is an act of sharp but short-lived vengeance against Yogev, for stalling the appointment of Yair Shamir to the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of IAI. Apparently, Yair Shamir – the son of the late former Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir – a successful entrepreneur, had already served as the Chairman of the Board of IAI, but his renewed appointment is being delayed owing to the fact that the government's view, according to which he may be appointed to that position despite the many other positions he holds – has not been accepted. If this interpretation is correct, then as soon as Shamir's appointment goes through, the privatization of IMI will be resumed.
Some estimates voiced this past weeks have indicated, however, that Lieberman's move was much more than an act of personal vengeance. According to an alternative interpretation, Lieberman's grand scheme is not to have IMI privatized, but initiate a public issue on the stock exchange instead. The person who's expected to lead an issuance of IAI on the stock exchange first is Yair Shamir – with IMI to be issued later on, which would put an end to the process of having it sold. At this time, Lieberman is not bothering to clear the fog shrouding his recent moves.
In his weekly column, Amir Rappaport reveals an alternative scenario to the Elor Azaria affair. Also: the implications of the leaked CIA hacking tools and the battle behind the IMI privatization process
PM Netanyahu with the IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eizenkot and former Minister of Defense Ya'alon (Photo: Kobi Gideon / GPO)
In a week when former Minister of Defense and IDF Chief of Staff, Moshe Ya'alon has described publicly, in minute detail, the chain of events of the Elor Azaria affair, on the occasion of the establishment of his new political party, an alternative scenario could have easily come to mind.
According to this alternative scenario, the commander of the IDF Judea & Samaria Division and the general commanding IDF Central Command would have handled the incident promptly, using a "command" procedure where Azaria would have been sentenced to 60 days in military prison by a military disciplinary court. According to this alternative scenario, the Chief of Staff and Minister of Defense would never have intervened and the affair would have died in the media relatively quickly. This scenario never materialized, but it could have taken place, as we reveal here for the first time.
As it turns out, the commander of the IDF Judea & Samaria Division, Brig. Gen. Lior Carmelli, and the general commanding IDF Central Command, Maj. Gen. Roni Numa, did believe very strongly that the appropriate procedure would be a disciplinary hearing for Elor Azaria, but failed to convince the Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot. Carmelli had reached that conclusion as early as after the initial debriefing on the scene in Hebron, and submitted his recommendation to the general commanding IDF Central Command. Maj. Gen. Numa, who was strongly convinced that Elor Azaria should be sent to jail straight away, without any time-consuming legal proceedings, contacted the Chief of Staff and asked for his approval.
This is where the similarity between the alternative scenario and reality ends. The Chief of Staff, who was actually viewing the video clip of the incident on his computer screen at the time, rejected the recommendation forthright, calling instead for a comprehensive investigation by Military Police. The Minister of Defense at the time, Moshe Ya'alon, held a similar view, as did Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at least initially (until he changed his mind "pursuant to public opinion surveys," as Ya'alon has claimed earlier this week).
The bottom line: far removed from the scenario of a disciplinary hearing, the Azaria affair grew even more complex earlier this week, when an appeal was submitted to the Supreme Military Court – by the military prosecution on the one hand, and by Azaria's legal counsel on the other hand. Now the affair is guaranteed to go on tearing the IDF and Israeli society apart, by uncovering an additional dose of secret recordings and by spilling out buckets of slime in the course of the appeal (a small portion of which will be conducted in court, while the lion's share will be conducted in the media).
A Lethal Leak
The amazing revelation by Wikileaks – the so-called cyber manual of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), made the headlines justifiably, but two important aspects of this story have not been emphasized sufficiently.
Starting with the substance, the document leaked to the Internet, which appears to professionals to be perfectly authentic, is, in fact, a manual to all intents and purposes – a user's manual for anyone wishing to become a cyber attacker through self-learning. Particularly embarrassing is the fact that a sensitive cyber-related document has leaked to the web this time. Admittedly, however, after previous leaks from the most sensitive agencies of the USA, this recent leak is conceived as an almost "natural" phenomenon.
Let's move on to the implications of this leak. In this context, it is important to note that the document has revealed, for the first time and in an unequivocal manner, the fact that the USA regards cyber not just as a means for collecting intelligence (e.g. through innocent-looking TV sets, used as remotely-operated intelligence sensors), but also as an elimination weapon that is as lethal as a missile or at least as a pistol.
I intend, naturally, to the revelation that the Agency has been preparing for the possibility of taking control of vehicles remotely. From this point on, there are no limits to one's imagination. Let's assume the organization wants to eliminate someone without leaving a trace. All that is required is issuing a computer command to a vehicle that would disrupt its braking system and cause a certain accident. If the subject is not killed in the accident, he may be eliminated in the hospital, by remotely manipulating the oxygen supply system or some other vital system. Even if this revelation only involves some preliminary ideas of the CIA, it is by all means a dramatic development.
Also, the recent revelation could, naturally, affect the credibility of US-made products, but more importantly – it will change the cyber market in the coming months, with regard to offensive products (that are less well-known) and especially with regard to defensive products. The working assumption of all of the "players" right now is that a defensive solution will be provided soon for the "beyond imagination" tools revealed on the Internet, like spy TV sets, and that on the other hand – intelligence agencies will do their best to find new creative "tools" as soon as possible.
Privatization or a Stock Exchange Issue?
Much remains to be discovered regarding the clash between Minister of Defense Avigdor Lieberman and the Director of the Government Companies Authority, Uri Yogev, at least for the time being.
In this week's episode, Minister of Defense Lieberman announced that he was freezing the privatization of the government-owned company IMI. Numerous companies competing for the acquisition of IMI have thus far invested millions in this process, which is extremely important to Uri Yogev. One of the leading investors in this process was Elbit Systems, which has now emerged as the last remaining bidder. The State has also invested substantial funds in severance pay for the employees laid off, and a new company, Tomer, was established to keep possession of some highly confidential activities that cannot be sold.
According to one interpretation, Lieberman's decision is an act of sharp but short-lived vengeance against Yogev, for stalling the appointment of Yair Shamir to the position of Chairman of the Board of Directors of IAI. Apparently, Yair Shamir – the son of the late former Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir – a successful entrepreneur, had already served as the Chairman of the Board of IAI, but his renewed appointment is being delayed owing to the fact that the government's view, according to which he may be appointed to that position despite the many other positions he holds – has not been accepted. If this interpretation is correct, then as soon as Shamir's appointment goes through, the privatization of IMI will be resumed.
Some estimates voiced this past weeks have indicated, however, that Lieberman's move was much more than an act of personal vengeance. According to an alternative interpretation, Lieberman's grand scheme is not to have IMI privatized, but initiate a public issue on the stock exchange instead. The person who's expected to lead an issuance of IAI on the stock exchange first is Yair Shamir – with IMI to be issued later on, which would put an end to the process of having it sold. At this time, Lieberman is not bothering to clear the fog shrouding his recent moves.
