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[### Israeli firm under FBI scrutiny in Trump probe allegedly ...

The Times of Israel
https://www.timesofisrael.com › israeli-firm-under-fbi-s...](https://www.timesofisrael.com/israeli-firm-under-fbi-scrutiny-in-trump-probe-allegedly-targeted-bds-activists/)
Jun 6, 2018 — Psy-Group, which operates in Israel under the name Invop Ltd, is a self-styled leader in “intelligence and influence” which boasts in its ...Read more
Psy-Group, a mysterious Israeli company that is reportedly being investigated by the FBI in connection with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into alleged illegal interference in the 2016 US presidential election, was also involved in covert anti-BDS efforts, according to a lawsuit against the company and multiple sources who spoke to The Times of Israel.
BDS is a campaign by some pro-Palestinian activists encouraging people to boycott, divest from and sanction Israel over what they call its ill-treatment of the Palestinians.
Psy-Group, which operates in Israel under the name Invop Ltd, is a self-styled leader in “intelligence and influence” which boasts in its marketing material of its covert techniques and capabilities. Its founder and co-owner Joel Zamel was reported by the New York Times last month to have met with Donald Trump Jr. three months before the November 2016 US presidential elections, offering to assist his father’s campaign, and the company was reported to have drawn up “a multimillion-dollar proposal for a social media manipulation effort to help elect Mr. Trump.”
While a lawyer for Zamel denied that he or any his companies had any involvement in the US election campaign, Bloomberg News has reported that Special Counsel Mueller’s team is investigating flows of money into Psy-Group’s Cyprus bank account, and also that Psy-Group formed an alliance with Cambridge Analytica, a (now collapsed) company that the Trump campaign consulted on social media issues, following Trump’s election.
Psy-Group’s marketing materials highlight its “professionalism, legality and discretion,” and little is publicly known of its activities, but a Canadian legal battle has shed some light on its practices, including its alleged work to counter anti-Israel BDS activities.
The outlawbds.com website
Canadian hedge fund West Face Capital Inc. is currently involved in a legal dispute with rival Canadian investment fund Catalyst Capital Group Inc. West Face alleges that Catalyst hired Psy-Group and a second private intelligence company, Black Cube, to conduct a sting operation and defamation campaign against it. West Face is suing the two Israeli companies and their operatives for $500 million in damages. Catalyst, for its part, accuses West Face of foul play.
In the course of its investigation into the tactics allegedly used by Black Cube and Psy-Group, West Face discovered that a Psy-Group operative registered the website outlawbds.com, West Face’s complaint alleges.
Outlawbds.com has disappeared from the internet, but some BDS proponents have claimed that the site contained a “blacklist” with photos and email addresses of individuals believed to support BDS.
Screenshot of a YouTube video posted by a user called OutlawBDS. (YouTube screenshot)
Other BDS supporters report having received an email in September 2017 from the email address admin@outlawbds.com warning them: “Be aware that you have been identified as a BDS promoter. According to new legislation in New York State, individuals or organizations that engage in or promote BDS activities with US allies will no longer receive public funding or support. Moreover, the state and its agencies will no longer engage in business or hire these organizations and individuals as they have been deemed problematic and anti-American. You have been marked. You have been identified. You have a limited window of opportunity to cease and desist or face the consequences of your actions in legal proceedings. In case you have ceased your past wrongdoing, please contact us at admin@outlawbds.com for your profile to be removed from the Blacklist.”
The Times of Israel was told by multiple sources that Psy-Group worked to counter BDS activists — and is one of several such firms, set up by or employing former Israeli intelligence operatives, that do so.
Such work, The Times of Israel was told, is known to the Israeli government, and specifically the Ministry of Strategic Affairs, but is not paid for by the government.
Psy-Group marketing material
The sources said that such companies engage in various undercover activities against BDS leaders and activists. This work includes highlighting the sources of funding for BDS activities if such funding is obtained from terrorist or other banned organizations, and making public instances where activists have expressed extremist and/or anti-Semitic views. The goal can be to deter the activists from continuing their activities, the sources explained.
In the case of Psy-Group, The Times of Israel was told but could not independently verify, its anti-BDS work was financed by private donors, and the firm did not engage in illegal activity, did not disseminate false information, and did not engage in hacking.
The West Face project
The complaint in the lawsuit filed by West Face devotes relatively little attention to Psy-Group’s alleged anti-BDS work.
It briefly asserts that the Psy-Group operative who registered the outlawbds website went on to hire one “Amin Razvi (‘Razvi’), an individual residing in India,” to carry out work related to outlawbds.com.
The main thrust of the document deals with the alleged “defamation campaign against West Face,” as carried out by Psy-Group and Black Cube. Razvi worked for Psy-Group on that campaign, the document claims, posting defamatory content about West Face online.
Detailing the alleged activities of the two Israeli companies, the complaint claims that operatives from both Black Cube and Psy-Group “conspired to provide reporters, news agencies (including the National Post, Bloomberg News and the Associated Press), as well as others, with edited, distorted or otherwise falsified recordings and/or transcripts of meetings between operatives of Black Cube and its targets, including current and former employees.”
According to the complaint, Psy-Group — whose operatives in the Canadian project allegedly included former Israeli television journalist Emmanuel Rosen — worked in tandem with Black Cube, publishing defamatory articles and social media posts about West Face and using sophisticated masking techniques to hide their tracks.
Harvey Weinstein attends the ‘Reservoir Dogs’ 25th anniversary screening during the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival in New York, April 28, 2017. (Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
West Face learned of Black Cube and Psy-Group’s activities when its employees recognized the image of Stella Penn Pechanac in news reports about rape and harassment accusations against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein. Pechanac was a Black Cube employee who reportedly posed as a woman’s rights activist and who befriended actress Rose McGowan in a bid to gather intelligence on behalf of Weinstein. Employees of West Face recognized Pechanac as the same woman who had reached out to them.
Several affidavits by employees and former employees of West Face Capital allege that Stella Penn Pechanac approached them, using various aliases, offering unique and exciting employment opportunities and in some cases flying them to London for fake job interviews. Black Cube operatives then allegedly plied some of these employees with alcohol in an attempt to extract information that would benefit their client in its legal proceedings.
In one instance, a Black Cube operative is alleged to have tried to entrap a retired Canadian judge into making anti-Semitic comments. According to the plaintiffs, the hope was to discredit a verdict the judge had handed down against Black Cube’s client, Catalyst, whose managing partner is Jewish.
In response to a Times of Israel request for comment, Black Cube sent the following statement: “It is Black Cube’s policy to never discuss its clients with any third party, and to never confirm or deny any speculation made with regard to the company’s work. Referencing Black Cube has become an international sport during 2018. It is important to note that Black Cube always operates in full compliance of the law in every jurisdiction in which it conducts its work, following legal advice from the world’s leading law firms.”
In a separate matter, Black Cube was accused last month of working to slander Obama administration officials involved with the Iran nuclear deal as part of a covert effort to discredit the multinational accord. It denied the allegation.
Psy-Group closing down
Psy-Group is currently in bankruptcy proceedings in an Israeli court.
Thepublicly available bankruptcy filings, in which 29 of the Psy-Group’s employees have requested that the firm be liquidated, contain various hitherto unpublished details about Psy-Group, its activities and employees.
In Israel, Psy-Group operates under the name Invop Ltd., which according to Israel’s corporate registry was founded on December 22, 2014. Its chief executive officer is Royi Burstien, the former commander of an Israeli psychological warfare unit, according to Bloomberg. All of Invop’s shares are owned by a Cypriot company called IOCO Ltd., which in turn is owned by a British Virgin Islands company called Protexer Limited.
According to the petition by Psy-Group employees, dated February 28, 2018, employees were informed the previous week that they would not receive their February salaries because “two critical business developments had failed.” As a result, the company had fallen into a credit crunch and would be unable to pay its employees their February salaries, or, for that matter, continue to operate. The company’s director, Burstien, did not object to the bankruptcy proceedings initiated by employees and on May 21, the court appointed a special administrator for the company.
The majority of Psy-Group’s 29 employees listed in the petition appear to be young recent university graduates. A perusal of their LinkedIn pages reveals that many attended the Interdisciplinary Center in Herzliya, an elite private college near Tel Aviv, and many served in intelligence units in the Israel Defense Forces and other Israeli security services, although not necessarily in senior roles.
Despite her relative youth, at least one employee of Psy-Group earned a salary that is more than three times the Israeli average of NIS 10,300 a month: The petition includes the pay stub of an employee whose job title was “project manager” and whose gross salary was NIS 33,0363.
A few names on the list stand out. One of the petitioners is Emmanuel Rosen, a former Israeli journalist. Contacted by The Times of Israel, he had no comment on this article.
Also on the list of Psy-Group employees is Eitan Charnoff, who in 2016 was the director of iVote Israel, a controversial get-out-the-vote campaign for Americans in Israel. He directed iVote Israel at the same time that he worked at Psy-Group. “Eitan Charnoff is not currently involved with either independent organization so is not in a position to comment on anything related to either entity,” said his attorney Carrie H. Cohen of Morrison & Foerster LLP.
:{
iVoteIsrael volunteers sign up US citizens for absentee ballots at a mall in Jerusalem in June 2012 (photo credit: courtesy of iVoteIsrael.com)}:
Israeli-Australian Paul Vesely, who is not one of the petitioners, but who claimed in his LinkedIn page to have been one of the founders of Psy-Group, was previously the chief operating officer at Veribo, a company that provided online reputation management services to binary options companies. He had not replied to a request for comment at the time of publication.
In addition, four previous Psy-Group employees listed in Invop Ltd’s bankruptcy filings currently work for a company called Cyabra, whose stated mission is to help identify sockpuppets and fake Facebook profiles for organizations that have been targeted by fake comments. Cyabra had no comment on this article.
Psy-Group had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
=-==
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GGL 3 26
[### Israel • Leaked emails shed light on former Israeli leaders ...

Intelligence Online
https://www.intelligenceonline.com › 2025/09/19 › leak...](https://www.intelligenceonline.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/09/19/leaked-emails-shed-light-on-former-israeli-leaders--dealings-with-private-intelligence-companies,110523820-eve)
Sep 19, 2025 — According to some of the emails, Zamel was introduced to Gantz by Pinchas Buchris, the former head of Unit 8200, the Israeli military signals ...Read more
[### Jeffrey Epstein laughed off Israeli spy claims : r/geopolitics

Reddit · r/geopolitics
290+ comments · 8 months ago](https://www.reddit.com/r/geopolitics/comments/1m0dend/jeffrey_epstein_laughed_off_israeli_spy_claims/)
Joel Zamel appears to have came up with the idea of getting Russia to help Trump win: "In 2015, Zamel's Wikistrat spent a week running ...Read more
[### Jeffrey Epstein's conversations about “race science” with ...

Facebook · The Atlantic
140+ reactions · 1 month ago](https://www.facebook.com/TheAtlantic/posts/jeffrey-epsteins-conversations-about-race-science-with-some-of-the-most-powerful/1287237583275649/)
Perhaps most disturbing, Epstein allegedly discussed plans to impregnate multiple women at his New Mexico ranch in an attempt to spread his DNA ...Read more
People also ask
What does Epstein mean in German?
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[### Mohammed Jameel - Epstein's black book

epsteinsblackbook.com
https://epsteinsblackbook.com › names › mohammed-ja...](https://epsteinsblackbook.com/names/mohammed-jameel)
Mohammed Jameel is listed in Epstein's black book on page 29. Epstein recorded 2 phone numbers and no addresses under this name.Read more
[### The Dark Truth About Cambridge Analytica's Ties to ...

Vanity Fair
https://www.vanityfair.com › News › analytica](https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/05/the-dark-truth-about-cambridge-analyticas-ties-to-trumpworld?srsltid=AfmBOop_2YsL7g16tflO7Jem3zP-_qK9-W7Py0ruiKks-0qH1mqvCj8h)
May 23, 2018 — Zamel has met with Mueller's team, though his lawyer told the Journal that his client is “not a target” of the special counsel's investigation.Read more
[### Ambassador and Trump confidant Tom Barrack kept ...

Facebook · CBS News
430+ reactions · 3 weeks ago](https://www.facebook.com/CBSNews/posts/exclusive-ambassador-and-trump-confidant-tom-barrack-kept-in-regular-contact-wit/1314681350523706/)
EXCLUSIVE: Ambassador and Trump confidant Tom Barrack kept in regular contact with Jeffrey Epstein for years, documents show.
[### After Trump attacks New York Times, Giuliani tells paper ...

The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com › us-news › may › donal...](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/may/20/donald-trump-new-york-times-nader-zamel-prince)
May 20, 2018 — Marc Mukasey, a lawyer for Zamel, said: “Joel Zamel offered nothing to the Trump campaign, received nothing from the Trump campaign ...Read more
[### US media barely touches Epstein links with Israeli ... The Electronic Intifada
https://electronicintifada.net › content › us-media-barely-...](https://electronicintifada.net/content/us-media-barely-touches-epstein-links-israeli-intelligence/50822)
Jul 25, 2025 — Connections between sex trafficker and spy agencies have been long teased. But few are covering them.
Missing: ZAMEL | Show results with: ZAMEL
[### Zamel - Epstein Graph

epsteingraph.com
https://epsteingraph.com › people › zamel](https://epsteingraph.com/people/zamel)
Zamel appears in 3 DOJ Epstein disclosure documents.
Investigation
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley Giant
Apple has made headlines in recent weeks for touting its commitment to privacy and human rights, rolling out tools to limit surveillance and spyware. But behind the corporate messaging lies a much darker reality.
The company has quietly brought in dozens of veterans from Unit 8200, Israel’s shadowy military intelligence unit known for blackmail, mass surveillance, and targeted killings.
Many of these hires took place as Israel escalated its war on Gaza, and as CEO Tim Cook publicly expressed support for Israel while disciplining employees for pro-Palestinian expressions. Apple’s deepening ties to Israel’s most controversial intelligence raise uncomfortable questions, not only about the company’s political loyalties, but also about how it handles vast troves of personal user data.
A MintPress News investigation has identified dozens of Unit 8200 operatives now working at Apple. The company’s hiring spree coincides with growing scrutiny of its ties to the Israeli government, including its policy of matching employee donations to groups such as Friends of the IDF and the Jewish National Fund, both of which play a role in the displacement of the Palestinian people. The intense pro-Israel bias at the corporation has led many former and current employees to speak out.
This investigation is part of a series examining the close collaboration between Unit 8200 and Western tech and media companies. Previous investigations examined the links between Unit 8200 and social media giants like TikTok, Facebook and:(style="background-color:#ffbb16ff"):}: :{Google, and how former Unit 8200 spies are now responsible for writing much of America’s news about Israel/Palestine, holding top jobs at outlets like CNN and Axios.
Revealed: The Former Israeli Spies Working in Top Jobs at Google, Facebook and Microsoft
Hundreds of agents from Israeli spying organization Unit 8200 are now employed in top roles at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon.
MintPress News·Alan Macleod·Nov 16, 2022
A Few (Dozen) Bad Apples
Israel’s international reputation has taken a severe hit amid multiple spying scandals and ongoing attacks against its neighbors. During this same period, Apple has ramped up its recruitment of former Israeli intelligence personnel.
The Silicon Valley giant has hired dozens of former agents from the controversial Israeli intelligence outfit, Unit 8200, raising questions about the corporation’s political direction.
Nir Shkedi is among the most prominent examples. From 2008 to 2015, he served as a commander and Chief of Learning at Unit 8200, leading a team of approximately 120 operatives who developed new artificial intelligence tools to perform rapid data analysis.
Unit 8200 is at the forefront of this technology, and is known to have used AI to auto-generate kill lists of tens of thousands of Gazans, including children. These tools helped the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) bypass what it called human targeting, “bottlenecks,” and strike huge numbers of Palestinians.
Shkedi has been a physical design engineer at Apple’s Bay Area campus since 2022.
Noa Goor is another senior Unit 8200 figure turned Apple employee. From 2015 to 2020, Goor rose to become a project manager and head of cybersecurity and big data development team at Unit 8200, where she, in her own words, “invent[ed] creative technological solutions for high priority intelligence goals” and “manag[ed] two strategically important cyber projects” for the IDF.
One of the most important cyber projects Unit 8200 has launched in recent times is the September pager attack on Lebanon, an act that injured thousands of civilians and was widely condemned as an act of international terrorism, including by former CIA Director Leon Panetta. While Goor was not personally involved in that operation, Unit 8200 has spearheaded similarly nefarious actions for decades.
In 2022, Goor was hired by Apple as a system-on-chip design engineer.
Eli Yazovitsky, meanwhile, was directly recruited from Unit 8200. In 2015, he left a high-powered nine-year career as a manager in the military unit to join Apple, where he rose to become an engineering manager. He has since moved on to tech giant Qualcomm.
Unit 8200 is Israel’s most elite—and most controversial—military intelligence unit. It serves as the backbone of both Israel’s burgeoning tech sector and its repressive surveillance apparatus. The unit has developed cutting-edge technology like facial recognition and voice-to-text software to surveil, repress, and target Palestinians.
The vast amounts of data gathered on the Palestinian population, including their medical history, sex lives, and search histories, have been used for coercion and extortion. If a certain individual needed to travel across checkpoints for crucial medical treatment, permission could be suspended until they complied. Information about extramarital affairs or sexual orientation, especially homosexuality, is exploited as blackmail material. One former Unit 8200 agent recalled that he was instructed during his training to memorize different Arabic words for “gay” so that he could listen out for them in intercepted conversations.
Internationally, Unit 8200 may be best known for its “former” agents who created the notorious Pegasus software, used by repressive governments around the world to spy on tens of thousands of prominent figures, including royals, heads of state, activists, and journalists.
Among them was Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, who was assassinated by Saudi operatives in Türkiye in 2018.
While military service is mandatory for Jewish Israelis, few end up in Unit 8200 by accident. Described as “Israel’s Harvard,” parents spend fortunes on STEM-based extracurricular lessons for their children in the hopes that they will be selected to join the IDF’s most elite and selective unit. Those chosen are rewarded with lucrative careers in the tech industry upon completion of their service.
Given Unit 8200’s documented history of violence, espionage, and surveillance, both domestically and internationally, it is worth asking whether tech giants should be hiring its alumni in such large numbers.
Shkedi, Goor, and Yazovitsky are the most high-profile examples, but they are from alone. A closer look reveals that dozens of other Unit 8200 veterans have also secured key roles at Apple.
Engineering and Hardware Design:
Natanel Nissan, formerly head of data analysis at Unit 8200, joined Apple’s Tel Aviv office in 2022. Ofek Har-Even, a longtime officer and manager in the unit, has been a design verification engineer at Apple since 2022. Gal Sharon, a former intelligence systems operator and data analyst, has also worked as a physical design engineer since that same year.
Mayan Hochler and Shai Buzgalo, both former Unit 8200 analysts and instructors, hold roles in physical design and validation engineering, respectively.
Software and Cybersecurity:
Ofer Tlusty, who served nearly six years in Unit 8200 as a security and intelligence analyst, has worked as a software engineer at Apple since 2021. Ofek Rafaeli, who served between 2012 and 2016 and rose to project manager during Israel’s 2016 assault on Gaza, became a software engineer at Apple in 2023.
Guy Levy, a former intelligence analyst, now also works as a software engineer.
AI, Machine Learning, and Validation:
Avital Kleiman, a six-year veteran of Unit 8200, is now a machine learning algorithm engineer at Apple. Niv Lev Ari, currently a validation engineer, notes in his LinkedIn profile that he received a letter of commendation from Unit 8200 commander Aviv Kochavi for his work in the unit.
Other Technical Roles:
Shahar Moshe, who worked as an intelligence specialist at Unit 8200 from 2012 to 2015, is now a design verification engineer. Gil Avniel, who spent over five years in the unit, currently serves as a network engineer.
An Apple Rots From the Core
The growing number of former Israeli intelligence operatives working at Apple does not seem to concern the company’s senior management. CEO Tim Cook is known to hold strongly pro-Israel views and has spearheaded the Silicon Valley giant’s collaboration with the Israeli state.
Apple has acquired several Israeli tech firms and now operates three centers in the country, employing around 2,000 people. In 2014, Cook invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the company headquarters in Cupertino, CA, where, in front of the cameras, the two openly embraced. The following year, Cook accepted an invitation from President Reuven Rivlin to visit Israel. “It is a great privilege to host you and your team here,” Rivlin said, “Even for me, as one who prefers to write with a pen and paper, it is clear what a great miracle you have created when I look at my staff, and my grandchildren.”
Effusive praise for the Apple CEO has also come in the form of honors from pro-Israel organizations. In 2018, the Anti-Defamation League presented Cook with its inaugural Courage Against Hate Award at its Never Is Now Summit on anti-Semitism and Hate, where the organization described him as a “visionary leader in the business community.”
Netanyahu meets Apple CEO Tim Cook during a visit to Apple in 2014. Photo | Israeli GPO
In the wake of the October 7, 2023, attacks, Cook sent out a company-wide email expressing his solidarity with Israel. “Like so many of you, I am devastated by the horrific attacks in Israel and the tragic reports coming out of the region,” he wrote, My heart goes out to the victims, those who have lost loved ones, and all of the innocent people who are suffering as a result of this violence.”
Yet, according to Apples4Ceasefire—a group of former and current employees opposing Israeli actions in Gaza—he has yet to say anything publicly about the mass devastation caused by the Israeli response to October 7.
Indeed, the Silicon Valley corporation has a policy of matching employee donations to groups such as Friends of the IDF, which raises money to buy equipment for IDF soldiers, and the Jewish National Fund, an organization that participates in the theft and destruction of Palestinian land.
Under Cook’s leadership, Apple employees have been disciplined or even fired for wearing pins, bracelets, or keffiyehs in support of the Palestinian people. Nevertheless, groups such as Apples4Ceasefire continue to speak out about what they describe as Apple’s complicity in genocide.
The Unit 8200 Tech Takeover
To be fair, Apple is far from the only tech or media company to hire large numbers of former Unit 8200 operatives. A 2022 MintPress exposé revealed hundreds of Israeli intelligence veterans working at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon.
Perhaps the most notable of these is Emi Palmor, a former Israeli justice ministry official who sits on Facebook’s 21-person Oversight Board. Described by Mark Zuckerberg as his platform’s “supreme court,” the board ultimately decides what content is allowed or removed from the world’s largest social network. Facebook has worked closely with the Israeli government to censor or deplatform Palestinian content and accounts.
Even TikTok, often seen as a more open platform, has been hiring former Israeli spies to help manage its operations, according to a November investigation by MintPress. Reut Medalion, for example, served as a Unit 8200 intelligence commander and led its cybersecurity operations team.
TikTok isn’t anti-Israel: It’s Hired Unit 8200 Agents to Run its Affairs
A MintPress News study has unearthed a network of former agents of Israeli spying agency Unit 8200 working at TikTok, a company charged with supposedly being a Chinese-owned hub of anti-Semitic content., Chinese influence TikTok, Israeli spying influence TikTok, Project Texas TikTok, TikTok anti-Palestine bias, TikTok former CIA hires, TikTok Israel content moderation, TikTok Israeli intelligence hires, TikTok pro-Palestine suppression, TikTok U.S.
MintPress News·Alan Macleod·Dec 30, 2024
In December 2023, during the peak of Israel’s attack on Gaza, Medalion moved to New York City to accept a job as global incident manager for TikTok’s trust and safety division. Considering the events going on in the world at the time, it’s worth asking what sorts of “global incidents” she was brought in to manage.
After MintPress exposed Medalion’s past to a worldwide audience, she deleted her entire digital footprint from the internet.
Former Israeli intelligence operatives have also found their way into American newsrooms, shaping coverage of the Middle East. A recent MintPress investigation uncovered a network of former Unit 8200 operatives working in some of the most influential newsrooms in the United States.
Revealed: The Israeli Spies Writing America's News
Media personalities like Barak Ravid, an ex-Israeli spy turned Washington journalist, play a key role in shaping media coverage that protects Israeli military actions and influences unwitting American audiences., Barak Ravid, Barak Ravid spy, Biden administration, Israel-Palestine conflict, Israeli intelligence, Israeli media influence, Media Manipulation, media whitewashing, pro-Israel bias, U.S.
MintPress News·Alan Macleod·Dec 8, 2024
Among them is Axios correspondent Barak Ravid, whose Middle Eastern coverage won him the prestigious White House Press Correspondents’ Award. Until at least 2023, Ravid was a member of Unit 8200. CNN has also hired at least two former agents to produce their news coverage, one of whom, Tal Heinrich, now serves as the official spokesperson for Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Given this pattern, Silicon Valley’s partiality towards Israel should not come as no surprise. From tech giants like Google and Amazon to social media powerhouses like TikTok and Facebook, the field is filled with former Israeli spies. Apple is no exception, having hired dozens, if not more, Unit 8200 operatives to run its platforms and shape the company.
This investigation does not claim that the Israeli state is deliberately infiltrating Silicon Valley. However, what it does unquestionably suggest is that the outlook and general biases of these entities are strongly pro-Israel. What does it say about Silicon Valley’s culture that individuals with well-documented ties to a controversial foreign spy agency are considered ideal hires?
It is unthinkable that former intelligence agents of Hezbollah, Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence, or Russia’s FSB or GRU would be hired en masse, and trusted with our most sensitive data. Yet, when it comes to Israel (or U.S. surveillance agencies), the answer is different. Many of these employees are not even “former” agents, and are directly recruited from Unit 8200 while still in active service, despite Israeli law explicitly prohibiting the group’s members from identifying themselves or divulging their alliances.
Thus, in this light, it appears that those like Apples4Ceasefire struggling to end the company’s double standards are fighting an uphill battle.
Feature photo | Illustration by MintPress News
Alan MacLeod is Senior Staff Writer for MintPress News. He completed his PhD in 2017 and has since authored two acclaimed books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent, as well as a number of academic articles. He has also contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and Common Dreams. Follow Alan on Twitter for more of his work and commentary: @AlanRMacLeod.*
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MintPress News
https://www.mintpressnews.com › apple-israel-unit-8200-hiring › 290226
Rotten Apple: Apple Hires Dozens of Israeli Spies From Unit 8200
Jul 18, 2025A new MintPress investigation reveals that Apple has quietly hired dozens of operatives from Israel's elite spying outfit, Unit 8200.
- :{:{[}:
The Washington Standard
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley ...
Jul 21, 2025A new MintPress News study has found dozens of former agents of the Israeli spy agency, Unit 8200, working at tech giant Apple. Apple has made headlines in recent weeks for touting its commitment to privacy and human rights, rolling out tools to limit surveillance and spyware. But behind the corporate messaging lies a much […]
thetacticalhermit.com
J*w sic Watch: Rotten Apple - Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by ...
Jul 25, 2025Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley Giant A new MintPress News study has found dozens of former agents of the Israeli spy agency, Unit 8200, working at tech giant Apple. Apple has made headlines in recent weeks for touting its commitment to privacy and human rights, rolling out tools to limit surveillance and ...
The Unz Review
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley ...
Jul 19, 2025Apple's deepening ties to Israel's most controversial intelligence raise uncomfortable questions, not only about the company's political loyalties, but also about how it handles vast troves of personal user data. A MintPress News investigation has identified dozens of Unit 8200 operatives now working at Apple.
scheerpost.com
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley Giant
Jul 19, 2025A new MintPress News study has found dozens of former agents of the Israeli spy agency, Unit 8200, working at tech giant Apple.
The Alternative World
Rotten Apple: Apple Hires Dozens of Israeli Spies From Unit 8200
Jul 18, 2025A new MintPress News study has found dozens of former agents of the Israeli spy agency, Unit 8200, working at tech giant Apple.
Vuink.com
https://vuink.com › post › zvagcerffarjf-d-dpbz › apple-israel-unit-8200-hiring › 290226
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley Giant
Jul 31, 2025Apple has made headlines in recent weeks for touting its commitment to privacy and human rights, rolling out tools to limit surveillance and spyware. But behind the corporate messaging lies a much darker reality. The company has quietly brought in dozens of veterans from Unit 8200, Israel's shadowy military intelligence unit known for blackmail, mass surveillance, and targeted killings. Many ...
onaquietday.org
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley ...
Aug 8, 2025During this same period, Apple has ramped up its recruitment of former Israeli intelligence personnel. The Silicon Valley giant has hired dozens of former agents from the controversial Israeli intelligence outfit, Unit 8200, raising questions about the corporation's political direction. Nir Shkedi is among the most prominent examples.
The Greanville Post
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley ...
Jul 26, 2025ALAN MACLEOD—To be fair, Apple is far from the only tech or media company to hire large numbers of former Unit 8200 operatives. A 2022 MintPress exposé revealed hundreds of Israeli intelligence veterans working at Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon. Perhaps the most notable of these is Emi Palmor, a former Israeli justice ministry official who sits on Facebook's 21-person Oversight ...
nuclear-news.net
Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley ...
Jul 22, 2025Rotten Apple: Dozens of Former Israeli Spies Hired by Silicon Valley Giant July 18th, 2025, Alan Macleod Apple has made headlines in recent weeks for touting its commitment to privacy and human rights, rolling out tools to limit surveillance and spyware. But behind the corporate messaging
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