Israel’s foreign intelligence service has reportedly removed two senior officials over the failure to topple Iran’s regime.
Mossad director Roman Gofman removed the leaders of the Iran Division and the Intelligence Directorate, who were both involved in planning to overthrow the Iranian government, Israel's Channel 12 reported on Thursday.
Both are, however, expected to remain in the agency, said the station, one of Israel’s largest broadcasters.
The report comes only days after US President Donald Trump halted large-scale strikes on Iran at the weekend, saying he wanted to give a chance to talks aimed at ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
The American U-turn sparked fears in Israel that Tehran might be on the brink of important gains in the waterway, despite having sustained major damage since the beginning of the war.
Israeli outlet Haaretz quoted a source who was critical of the Mossad reshuffle, saying that Mr Gofman "was one of the key supporters of the plan to change the regime in Iran when he served as [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s military secretary”.
“He decided on the dismissals in order to help Netanyahu distance himself from responsibility for the fact that the Iranian government did not fall,” the source added. Channel 12 reported that agency officials were in shock over the sackings.
In March, The New York Times reported that David Barnea, the Mossad director at the time, told Mr Netanyahu and senior US administration officials that his agency could foment an uprising that would lead to the collapse of the Iranian government in a matter of days.
The plan reportedly involved close co-ordination between Israel and the US to combine a ground invasion led by Kurdish forces with Israeli and US jets providing air cover.
A growing Kurdish-led force was supposed to push on to Tehran, gathering momentum and supporters along the way. The plan also envisaged Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former president of Iran, who during his term had been staunchly against the US and Israel, as the country’s new leader, the report said.
Overthrowing the Iranian regime has long been a priority for Mr Netanyahu. During his decades-long prime ministerial career, he has sought US support towards achieving the goal, despite the vast risks such a war would entail for the region and the global economy.
A majority of Israelis supported a war against Iran in polls carried out at the beginning of the conflict, with many viewing the country as an existential threat, in particular because of its nuclear programme.
Israel, along with many other countries in the Middle East, also points to the threat from Iran’s sponsoring of regional proxy groups and its drone and ballistic missile programmes, all of which have been used in Tehran's strikes across the region.
Mr Gofman, who took up the post on June 2, had a controversial start to his time in the agency. His appointment was marred by legal objections and allegations that his conduct during his military career was not fit for one of the most important roles in Israel’s vast security world. He was previously Mr Netanyahu’s military secretary.
