MESOPOTAMI NEWS CORONA IN ISRAEL : A QUESTION OF MILITARY INTELLIGENCE !

IDF intelligence’s constant eye on coronavirus and Iran

While the enemy may be different, “this is very similar to our usual work.”

By ANNA AHRONHEIM   APRIL 27, 2020 16:19  JERUSALEM POST

Israel’s Military Intelligence Directorate has spent the past six weeks researching an enemy different from the usual suspects, one which has so far claimed some 200 lives: the novel coronavirus.

When the virus took hold in Israel in early March, officers and troops from the Military Intelligence Directorate’s Research Division switched gears from enemies such as Iran and Hezbollah and opened a national coronavirus information center at Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, to work with the Health Ministry in order to help stop the spread of the virus.

In March, Captain D, who usually researches Syria’s nuclear program, was approached by her commander. She had a new role – she was to research coronavirus tests and which could be the best one to import in order to use on Israeli citizens.

Cpt. D, whose name cannot be shared for security purposes, was one of four officers working at Israel’s National Coronavirus Information Center who spoke with The Jerusalem Post about their work against their latest enemy.

Using the military’s capabilities to gather intelligence, they amass all available information on the virus from across the globe – such as official government statistics, academic research, social media and fake news, as well as artificial intelligence and machine learning – to help the government, Health Ministry and IDF Home Front Command make critical decisions.

While the enemy may be different, “this is very similar to our usual work,” said Col. N., commander of Military Intelligence’s Technology Department, which specializes in analyzing enemy technology and weaponry.

“We understood a month-and-a-half ago that there is a gap in the information we have on the virus,” said Col. N, whose name cannot be shared for security purposes.

According to the colonel, Cpt. D is one of 300 officers and troops from the Research Division – “who used to do something completely different” – who have been working around the clock to gather all available data on the disease.

“The center has researchers from all aspects of Military Intelligence,” said Maj. A, who used to focus on Iran’s nuclear project. “We are academics who know how to do data-driven research.”

Col. N told the Post that they sat with officials from the Health Ministry in early March and asked what they needed in the fight against the coronavirus. “They told us they needed up-to-date and relevant information on the virus,” he said, adding that “it was clear to us, that just like in any war, we need to help.”

Since then, “We have been focused on a new enemy: the coronavirus.”

“We look at all the research from all over the world, the most up-to-date research,” said Maj. A, adding that troops are “also looking at various policies implemented by various governments and how they are dealing with the crisis; which countries are reopening and which aren’t; the impact of the at-risk populations like refugees and foreign workers and more.”

Col. N told the Post that it was “luck” that the first outbreak in Israel came after the first waves in Asia and Europe, as they were able to see what policies were working in various countries in those regions and what were not.

“We aren’t looking at the future but in the past. If we see that the numbers are stable now, then it means that what we did two or three weeks ago worked,” he said. “We see now that the Passover holiday was a success.”

There are between 15-20 officers in charge of more than a dozen soldiers who focus on specific questions, speak with sources around the world and look at the statistics of the virus. Within a day or two, they need to have the answer they are looking for.