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the mossad
israel’s external intelligence agency
The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations is known simply as “The Institute,” which in Hebrew is Mossad. Israel’s legendary and feared secret service, roughly the equivalent of America’s CIA, has carried out some of Israel’s most daring operations, including the capture of Adolf Eichmann, running the spy Eli Cohen in Syria, and arranging the defection of an Iraqi pilot for his state-of-the-art MiG-21. The Mossad has also had its share of spectacular failures over the years (to be discussed in later podcast seasons). It has also conducted non-military operations, such as obtaining rare Jewish texts and, more recently, medical supplies to treat COVID-19.