Arab media reports pin Mossad chief in UAE

Unconfirmed reports circulating in the Arab media claim that Mossad chief Tamir Pardo visited the United Arab Emirates in May and held a number of secret meetings with top security officials in the region.

According to the reports, which began surfacing over the weekend, Pardo convened with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as well as several other leading Arab figures. 

Pardo was also said to have met with dismissed Fatah leader and former Gaza Preventive Security Force head Mohammed Dahlan, who currently resides in Dubai.

Pardo’s meeting with Dahlan apparently took place on May 20, about six weeks before the ouster of Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi. Pardo, the reports claimed, had likely discussed the unfolding situation in Egypt with the Gulf region officials, in order to coordinate policies.

The reports, which were not immediately addressed by any official Israeli sources, further claimed that the Mossad chief may have discussed possible ways to induce protests and flare-up demonstrations in Egypt, in order to hasten the removal of the Muslim Brotherhood representative.

Earlier this month, the UAE granted $3 billion to Egypt following the establishment of an interim government in Cairo.

Last month, Turkish paper Hurriyet reported that Pardo secretly met with top Turkish intelligence officials in Ankara to discuss Iran, Syria, and the domestic protests in Turkey.

According to the report, Pardo met Hakan Fidan, the undersecretary of Turkey’s intelligence agency, in Ankara. The two discussed the ongoing civil war in Syria and the Iranian presence in that country, which borders both Israel and Turkey, the report said.

Pardo reportedly gave Fidan information, from the Mossad and other Israeli intelligence hierarchies, concerning anti-Turkish activity by Syria and Iran, Israeli sources said later Wednesday. 

This included intelligence on activity of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards inside Turkey, the sources said.

The Mossad head was also updated about the Turkish Taksim Square protests. Sources told the Turkish newspaper that both Syrian and Iranian units were believed to be acting in Turkey against the government.