Huseyin NurluOne of the first acts of notoriety by the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad was the dramatic abduction of the notorious Nazi war criminal, Adolf Eichmann, from Argentina in 1960. And later, it grabbed the headlines by eliminating the Black September operatives responsible for the 1972 Munich Olympic massacre.
While such assassinations, kidnappings, and acts of sabotage may align with Israel’s national security doctrines, their execution, without consent and within foreign sovereign territories, runs afoul of international law.
These operations often violate sovereignty, involve unlawful use of force, and infringe on basic human rights, including due process and the right to life.
For decades, Israel’s intelligence machine has been cloaked in an aura of impunity. To some, this gave Mossad a reputation as the world’s most formidable spy agency. But that illusion is wearing thin, especially in Türkiye.
While Mossad has achieved some intelligence successes using local agents inside Iran, particularly during high-profile missions like the so-called ‘Operation Rising Lion’, they have consistently stumbled within Turkish borders.
Since 2021, Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and police units have systematically dismantled Mossad's domestic networks through a series of counterintelligence strikes.
Blow after blow: Türkiye's crackdown
In recent years, Türkiye has scored a series of major intelligence victories by unmasking Mossad’s covert activities.
Working in close coordination, MİT and police units have disrupted multiple espionage rings, unravelling Israel’s deeper ambitions inside the country.
The crackdown began in 2021 with an Istanbul-led operation spanning four provinces. Authorities exposed Mossad’s first major network, allegedly tasked with gathering intelligence on Palestinian students. Fifteen suspects were arrested.
In 2022, the net widened. Authorities uncovered a 68-member spy ring comprising private detectives and civilian operatives. The group had reportedly supplied Mossad with addresses, flight data, and surveillance files.
The following year saw the exposure of a ‘Ghost Cell’ of 56 individuals. This group was allegedly targeting foreign diplomats and political figures in Türkiye. Seven suspects were detained.
In January 2024, the ‘Mole Operation’ launched simultaneous raids across eight provinces. Thirty-four individuals were taken into custody and accused of blackmail, surveillance, and kidnapping attempts.
A couple of months later, March saw the arrest of a private detective network believed to be working directly with Israeli handlers, providing real-time intelligence from the ground.
A major April operation dismantled what appeared to be a family-run internal espionage ring. Eight people were arrested for criminal activities, including document forgery, target tracking, and cyber surveillance. Courts sentenced them to a combined 100 years in prison.
But perhaps the year’s most high-profile takedown came in August 2024. Kosovo-born Liridon Rexhepi, alleged to be Mossad’s financial coordinator in Türkiye, was captured in Istanbul.
Investigators found he had transferred funds, via cryptocurrency and Western Union, to agents involved in cross-border operations, including missions in Syria.
These operations did more than neutralise immediate threats. They sent a clear message: Mossad cannot establish a permanent or sustainable presence on Turkish soil.
When the hunter is hunted: The Omar Albelbaisy case
One of Mossad’s most consequential setbacks in Türkiye came not in the form of arrests, but strategic exposure.
Omar Albelbaisy, allegedly linked to the Desert Falcons, a Middle Eastern cyber group known for disrupting Israel’s Iron Dome system, became a high-priority Mossad target. Israel's goal was to abduct him, extract cyber intelligence, and dismantle the network.
The covert plan involved fake job offers from Norway and Brazil, financial lures, and elaborate cyber traps. Eventually, Mossad agents cornered Albelbaisy in Malaysia and abducted him.
What they hadn’t counted on was Türkiye’s silent involvement.
Thanks to coordinated efforts between Malaysian police and Turkish intelligence-MİT, Albelbaisy was rescued within 36 hours—reportedly after enduring torture during interrogation.
Even more damaging to Mossad, photographs and identities of the agents involved were released later. In intelligence circles, this public exposure is equivalent to neutralising the operatives entirely.
This wasn’t just a defensive operation; it was a tactical counterstrike. For Mossad, it marked a turning point: from hunter to hunted.
Türkiye’s active counterintelligence doctrine
Mossad’s legacy is built on shadow warfare—precision strikes, cloak-and-dagger operations, and covert sabotage. Yet Türkiye is a unique country where this model consistently falters.
Since 2021, Ankara has embraced an active counterintelligence doctrine, not merely reactive, but preventive and punitive. Türkiye not only dismantled Mossad’s local networks but also prosecuted them in open court and made their crimes public.
This level of transparency stands in stark contrast to the secrecy typical of intelligence battles.
Mossad’s usual toolkit—technical surveillance, use of local proxies, and digital leaks—has met stiff resistance in Türkiye. Local laws, technological capabilities, and field operations have created an inhospitable terrain for covert action.
Türkiye has evolved beyond simply tracking spies. It now draws them in, creates traps, initiates contact deliberately, and exposes them with documented evidence. For a clandestine agency like Mossad, this model represents an entirely new class of threat.
Through continuous monitoring, internal cohesion, advanced tech, and legal oversight, Türkiye has erected a model that neutralises not just Mossad but any foreign intelligence threat.
Mossad’s perceived dominance is being replaced by a new reality, one where its own shadows are illuminated.
Türkiye has stepped into a leading role in intelligence warfare: not merely reacting to global espionage, but shaping the rules of engagement.
