Hundreds of veterans from the Mossad and Shin Bet have joined a growing protest movement demanding an end to the war in Gaza — even at the cost of halting military operations — to secure the release of Israeli hostages. The movement, originally launched by Israeli air force reservists, has now gained momentum across nearly every branch of the country’s military and intelligence services.
According to Haaretz, the wave of protest is being fueled by a combination of factors: solidarity with the 59 hostages still held by Hamas, deepening frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government, and an emerging belief among security veterans that national security is being subordinated to political survival.
A petition organized by Mossad veterans has drawn signatures from hundreds of former operatives, including three former Mossad chiefs: Danny Yatom, Efraim Halevy, and Tamir Pardo. The letter urges the government to “pursue any agreement that could bring an end to the suffering of the hostages — even at the cost of halting the fighting,” and emphasizes that “the sanctity of life takes precedence over revenge.”
David Meidan, a former head of Mossad’s agent recruitment division, and Gail Shoresh, a retired department head from the agency’s foreign relations unit, were among the petition’s initiators. Soon after, retired members of the Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service, echoed the call, stating publicly that bringing the hostages home “is a supreme ethical commandment, even at the price of temporarily ending the fighting.”
The protests mark a resurgence of dissent that had largely quieted after Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, in which 251 people were abducted and atrocities were committed. In the wake of that attack, many who had protested against Netanyahu’s controversial judicial overhaul returned to active duty. But nearly 18 months into the war, the mood has shifted once again.
“Netanyahu is interested in prolonging the war,” a senior Mossad operative told Haaretz. “He wants to create a sense of emergency in order to solidify his power. This is his true goal and not security concerns.”
Protesters accuse the prime minister of using the conflict to delay negotiations and escape both political and legal reckoning. Netanyahu, in turn, has dismissed his critics as “frustrated retirees.”
Among those unable to add her name to the petition was Aliza Magen, a trailblazing Mossad veteran who passed away just hours before the letter was released. Magen, who once served as Deputy Head of Mossad — the highest position ever held by a woman in the agency — was known for her fearless leadership in decades of covert operations.
While the protests are sharply critical of Netanyahu’s leadership, the signatories stress that their actions are not about refusing military service. Rather, they assert their right as citizens — and as some of the state’s most experienced security professionals — to speak out in defense of Israeli democracy and human life.
As Haaretz noted, what began as a protest by air force reservists has now become a national reckoning — one that is shaking the very foundations of Israel’s defense establishment.
