As an FBI agent, Ali Soufan helped unravel the plotting of al-Qaida’s September 11 assaults. His questioning of the group’s leaders prevented pending terror assaults, however Soufan’s old-school interrogation strategies, like bonding with prisoners by talking Arabic or bringing a plate of sugar-free cookies to a diabetic detainee, had been pushed apart by the CIA in favor of waterboarding and different “enhanced” methods. Soufan went on to open his personal safety consulting company, the place he works with shoppers all over the world. Currently, the Israel-Hamas warfare has been occupying a big a part of the corporate’s consideration. Soufan spoke to Vanity Honest between journeys to the area.
Self-importance Honest: You might be painfully accustomed to the American intelligence failures that helped allow the September 11 assaults. What’s your evaluation of the errors made by Israel’s intelligence companies main as much as October 7?
Ali Soufan: Hamas and Hezbollah had been doing workout routines this yr on the borders, an train much like what Hamas did on October 7. Perhaps the workout routines had been misinterpret by Israeli intelligence. However that is Monday morning quarterbacking at this level. One factor that the Israelis do higher than us, frankly, is after-action studies and accountability. I belief that there shall be a radical investigation. On the similar time, I imagine it was an even bigger failure than 9/11. Larger as a result of Gaza is within the yard and has been surrounded for 16 years, and Israel has intelligence companies which might be so skilled and highly effective that they know what’s occurring all over the world. And right here it’s occurring actually throughout the road.
President Biden, when he visited Israel, cautioned its leaders to not repeat the errors the US made in responding to 9/11. What did you consider his feedback, and does Israel appear to be heeding them?
President Biden’s recommendation to our Israeli mates may be very sound. You must take note of the way in which you’re executing this warfare. As a result of in 9/11, we began the warfare to eliminate al-Qaida and the Taliban in Afghanistan, after which we ended up doing stuff that had nothing to do with it, like invading Iraq and creating torture black websites, a variety of issues that aren’t actually a part of who we’re. Typically, we did issues that made al-Qaida and the Taliban extra highly effective. All of this expertise that the individuals in Gaza are having now could have a big affect in a while. We had an enormous sledgehammer, and we destroyed our enemy. However then what? As a result of the enemy can come again.
For the previous month, the main focus has understandably been on Israel and Hamas. However there are numerous different actors not directly concerned on this warfare. Which of them do you imagine are most essential?
Iran gained lots. Not essentially Iran as a rustic, however the so-called axis of resistance [a loose coalition of anti-Western and anti-Israel militant groups] gained lots. On October 6, we’re speaking about normalization with Saudi Arabia. We’re speaking in regards to the significance of the Abraham Accords. We’re speaking about Israel normalizing with the Arab world. And Netanyahu was speaking a couple of new commerce line from India to Haifa. On October 7, the whole lot modified. It ushered in a brand new period of chaos to the area the place Iran’s non-state actors—among the militias in Iraq, among the militias in Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad—are as highly effective politically, particularly with the Arab avenue, as nation-states. The entire world was ready final Friday for Hassan Nasrallah [the secretary general of Hezbollah] to talk. The entire Center East sits glued to the tv, ready for the spokesperson of Hamas [Ghazi Hamad] to talk. The world realized what we’ve been warning about since 2019: that the so-called axis of resistance that Iran was creating is an axis of chaos and instability for the area.
Up to now you’ve been concerned in delicate hostage negotiations. There are presently believed to be about 250 individuals held by Hamas and different teams, together with Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Studies say CIA director William Burns is making an attempt to dealer a deal for the discharge of some in change for a pause in preventing.
It’s positively extra sophisticated than hostage circumstances with al-Qaida and ISIS or different common terrorist teams as a result of with these people, there’s a negotiation, and there’s an ask, principally cash. Right here, it’s extra linked to the entire Arab-Israeli battle and to the battlefield in Gaza. Should you look into the historical past of Hamas and Hezbollah or teams that function beneath the Iranian umbrella, they kidnap Israeli troopers or Israelis or our bodies of troopers who’ve been killed. They usually have been profitable in negotiating the discharge of lots of, if not 1000’s, of prisoners. However this isn’t a transaction simply between Hamas and Israel, negotiated by means of Egypt and the US and Qatar. Iran hasn’t spent all that cash and all that effort supporting Hamas, no matter whether or not they had been concerned instantly or not directly within the October 7 assaults, to not have enter to the negotiations.
Israel continues to press its offensive in Gaza. The place may you see the warfare going from right here?
