Explained: Who are Kidon, the elite assassins of Israel's Mossad?
There are reports that Mossad, Israel's intelligence agency, may have activated the legendary Kidon unit for covert operations and assassinations, known for its effectiveness in combating terrorism worldwide. Girish Linganna sheds more light on Israel's elite assassins
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FollowIt came as a huge surprise -- and shock -- to the entire world when it was revealed that Hamas was launching an attack on Israel with 3000 fighters. A significant portion of the fighters were assassins, and their mission was to kill as many civilians as they could in the most brutal manner possible, regardless of their age, gender, or whether or not they were wearing uniforms. Up until October 7, the rules of the game in the confrontation between Israel and the Palestinians appeared to be different, and the world would have never imagined that Hamas would be capable of doing something like that.
Israel promised to eradicate Hamas in its entirety, and Hamas is not limited to Gaza. On November 22, Netanyahu stated that he had given Mossad instructions to take action against the leaders of Hamas, regardless of where they were located. Yoav Gallant, Israel's Minister of Defence, has stated that the leaders of Hamas are currently living in "borrowed time." Gallant stated that the struggle is taking place all around the world, including those who are terrorists in Gaza as well as those who fly in fancy aircraft.
Israeli forces will pursue Hamas with unwavering determination, including the organisation's foreign leadership, which is now living in exile in Lebanon, Turkey, Qatar and elsewhere. For example, in October, Ismail Haniyeh, who is considered to be one of the leaders of the Palestinian group Hamas, together with his subordinates, departed from Turkey. Ismail Haniya was in Istanbul at the time of the attack. Haniya and other Hamas members were seen prostrating in a "prayer of gratitude" while watching news about the outbreak of hostilities on TV spread on social networks. There are contrasting claims. Some in the media claimed that the authorities in the country "politely" requested that they comply. Another version states they decided to leave since the special services could not adequately protect them.
It has been rumoured that the legendary Kidon unit has been activated. In short, Kidon is a unit that was established in 1972 in response to terrorist assaults that were carried out on Israeli athletes competing in the Munich Olympics, and the unit is designed to eliminate top terrorists in areas that are beyond the reach of the Israeli Army.
Special Operations Unit Kidon
Kidon (Javelin) is the name of a section inside the Israeli Mossad that is being held accountable for the execution (or maybe kidnapping) of individuals who are considered to be terrorists. On the other hand, the definition might not be entirely accurate, given that they have been associated with the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientists.Â
Kidon is accused of being the mastermind of several initiatives that have been successful in combating terrorism, including the Operation Wrath of God offensive. Because of the high level of secrecy surrounding the unit, no information can be considered reliable.
The authors Dan Raviv and Yossi Melman, in their book 'Spies against Armageddon: Inside Israel's Secret Wars (2012)', write that the Kidon killers 'excel at accurate shooting at any pace and standing stable to shoot and putting exquisitely formed sticky explosives'. They believe this style of shooting to be their signature trait.
Kidon, which is widely recognised as one of the most effective killing machines in the world, is technically referred to as a miniature Mossad within Mossad. Kidon has been given the responsibility of carrying out covert operations all over the world and has been involved in a considerable number of black operations and assassinations in a variety of countries. The individuals who carry out assassinations on behalf of Kidon are chosen either from within the Mossad espionage agency or from among the inhabitants of the countries in which they intend to carry out assassinations.
The book states that the Kidon kill team comprises four men with a great deal of experience: 1. Tracer 2. Transporter 3. Helper 4. Killer. A tracer is meant to locate the target. When the assassination crew arrives at the target, the transporter leads them there. In essence, the helper acts as the motorbike driver who assists the killer, and the killer is tasked with either shooting the target or attaching a magnetic bomb to the vehicle that the victim is driving.
Based on publicly available historical data, the Kidon unit is comprised of forty-two males and six females. This composition may have changed over the years. Everyone is in their late twenties and they live in a restricted military installation area close to Beersheba, located in the desert.Â
Along with a mock-up of an Arab hamlet and a suburban street, the location also contains several structures where the Kidon teams practise their lethal craft. Through training with a wide variety of handguns and knives, they acquire the skills necessary to administer a deadly injection to a large group of people. In addition to this, they analyse a failure.Â
Over the years, Kidon units have been known to be responsible for the killings of Arabs, Palestinians, and Iranians. Most notably, those who were responsible for the massacre that took place at the Munich Olympics involving Israeli sportsmen. The Kidon was able to corner and kill every member of the team who had been responsible for the deaths of the Olympic athletes.
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