It is a rare and listened to word in the intelligence community in Israel. Rear Admiral Ami Ayalon, 79, was for four years at the head of the Shin Bet, the equivalent of the DGSI. He warns: by acting as he is doing in Gaza and the West Bank, his country is heading for its downfall.
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The tone is assured, the words chanted and the messages delivered without ambiguity about the policy pursued by the coalition in power, the most right-wing in the history of Israel, with, at its head, the immovable Benjamin Netanyahu: “This government is destroying democracy”denounces Rear Admiral Ami Ayalon, former head of the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic intelligence service.
The Prime Minister was elected in 2022 for four years, and the next elections will be held in the fall of 2026: too far, too late, given the urgency of the situation. For Ami Ayalon, his fellow citizens must mobilize now: “We have to bring the country to a standstill. And that’s why we’re taking to the streets. Everything must be tried, even if it’s against the law. As long as there’s no violence, it’s legitimate. We have to be prepared to go to prison. That’s what we call civil disobedience.”
In the longer term, the former Shin Bet chief sees only one path to peace: “The only achievable and pragmatic agreement is to share this piece of land ! Palestinians feel like they have nothing to lose. And the worst enemy, the one you have to be wary of, is the enemy who thinks he has nothing to lose. They are fighting for their freedom. ! And if they are led to believe that the only way to end the occupation is through violence, they will do it. People are dying. !”
“The West Bank is our next front. Today we are talking about the Houthis, Gaza, Hezbollah, and then Iran, and surely Syria. No ! The West Bank is much closer and more dangerous.”
The former Shin Bet chief added that “Israelis do not see Palestinians as a people”but that the latter have according to him “an indisputable right to self-determination.”
