Other06 August, 20262 min read
Mossad Chief Roman Gofman Fires Two Officials After Iran Regime-Change Plan Fails
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Mossad chief Roman Gofman fired two senior officials over a failed Iran regime-change plan. The dismissed officials were head of Mossad's intelligence directorate and head of Iran division.
Gofman fires two officials
Israel’s newly appointed Mossad director Roman Gofman removed two senior intelligence officials after a plan to topple Iran’s leadership was never implemented, according to Israel’s Channel 12 as cited by India Today. India Today said the proposal involved triggering an internal uprising in Iran with support from Kurdish groups and other minorities, and that it was discussed at the highest levels of the Israeli government but was never implemented.
Roya News similarly said Gofman fired two of the spy agency’s most senior officials linked to an ambitious but unrealized plan to topple Iran’s Islamic leadership, citing a Hebrew Channel 12 report. Anadolu Ajansı reported that the officials were the head of the intelligence directorate and the chief of the agency’s Iran division, and that Channel 12 said the plan was developed in coordination with the US and sought to fuel internal moves against the Iranian government under broad Israeli-US military air cover.
Plan, leaks, and strain
India Today described the proposed operation as centered on Iran's Kurdish region near the Iraqi border, with Israeli strikes against positions belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to create an opening for Kurdish fighters. The report said the strategy fell apart after details of the operation were leaked, Kurdish groups expressed reservations, and Turkey opposed the proposal, and it added that US officials later advised President Donald Trump that Israeli assessments predicting an imminent collapse of Iran’s government were overly optimistic.
Roya News said security sources told Channel 12 that the pair had conceived and drafted the covert proposal and that it was presented to US President Donald Trump. The Jerusalem Post reported that security officials told N12 that neither official had developed a good working relationship with Gofman from the outset and that their tenures would end by mutual agreement.
Ahmadinejad and next moves
India Today said the plan also claimed it envisioned former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad eventually taking charge after the collapse of the current leadership, and it noted that neither Israel nor Ahmadinejad has confirmed the claims. Anadolu Ajansı reported that the effort stalled at an early stage, leading to the proposal being shelved and those responsible being held accountable, and it also stated that there was no immediate official Israeli comment on the reported dismissals.
The Jerusalem Post linked the personnel changes to the regime-change proposal, saying N12 reported that the two officials had conceived and drafted the plan presented to US President Donald Trump and that it was not implemented on the ground. Haaretz reported that Mossad chief Roman Gofman removed the heads of the agency's Intelligence Directorate and Iran Division from their positions amid the failure of efforts to topple the Iranian regime, citing Channel 12 News.