Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz warned Saturday night the Jewish State will respond “forcefully” to any Iranian attack on Israeli citizens in Turkey, or anywhere else for that matter.
“I call on all Israelis in Turkey to obey the instructions of the security forces,” Gantz wrote in a tweet Saturday night. “Israel is working to thwart Iranian attempts to carry out an attack and is preparing to respond forcefully to any attack on Israeli citizens – anywhere.”
אני קורא לכלל הישראלים הנמצאים בטורקיה להישמע להנחיות גורמי הביטחון. ישראל פועלת לסיכול הניסיונות האיראנים לבצע פיגוע, ונערכת להגיב בעוצמה מול כל פגיעה באזרחי ישראל – בכל מקום.
— בני גנץ – Benny Gantz (@gantzbe) June 18, 2022
Defense officials are warning Israelis about “concrete threats” in Istanbul, where there are still an estimated 2,000 Israelis despite warnings from Jerusalem to leave immediately.
Iranian terror cells are working hard to kill and/or kidnap Israelis visiting Turkey, the defense establishment said.
Israeli security personnel are worried about an Iranian cell infiltrating a hotel to kill or kidnap Israeli guests, bombings and/or local terror cells posing as Turkish tour guides to entice potential Israeli victims, Haaretz reported.
“Being in Istanbul right now is akin to playing Russian Roulette, tempting fate,” a security source told Israel’s Channel 12 News on Saturday.
“If we could publicize the full operational picture, they (Israelis) would be fleeing as they would from a fire.”
According to the source, there was a manhunt in progress in the streets of Istanbul “to stop an incident that has already gotten underway.”
Another security source told Channel 13 News, “There are Israelis who were minutes from death and do not know it. Another day where we let out a sigh of relief that the attack did not happen.”
Coordination between Israeli and Turkish intelligence has been “phenomenal,” according to the report.
Israeli and Turkish intelligence have already thwarted several planned attacks by Iranian agents. Several suspects have been arrested, according to Hebrew-language media.
The highest level warning – Level 4 – remains in place, with Israelis told not to travel to Turkey and to leave immediately if they are there.
“The incident is not yet behind us – there are still immediate attempts by hit squads to murder Israelis,” a defense source told Israel’s KAN News public broadcaster.
Mossad head David Barnea and National Security Council (NSC) chief Eyal Hulata met Friday afternoon for a situational assessment. On Thursday, rare and specific warnings were conveyed to Israelis in Turkey, urging them to lock their hotel doors and not open them – even for housekeeping. Israeli travelers in Turkey were warned not to post updates on social media, to stay away from popular destination and to avoid entering taxis that approach them.
The head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) intelligence service, Hossein Taeb is believed to be the one driving the attempted attacks in Turkey, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Taeb’s efforts are intended to avenge the death last month of IRGC Quds Force Col. Hassan Sayad Khodayari, which Iran blamed on Israel. Three more Iranians also mysteriously died in the past week, all of them believed to be involved in Iranian nuclear and missile projects. Two were reportedly involved in projects to develop arms for Iran’s Lebanese proxy, the Hezbollah terrorist organization.
Last month, Israeli and Turkish agents together thwarted an Iranian attack on Israeli tourists in Istanbul as well.
There have been reports in Iran of heavy pressure on Taeb with some calling for his removal after the recent deaths and thwarted revenge attacks in Turkey, a senior defense source said, leading to greater efforts around the world to kill or kidnap Israelis.
