Mossad brought 100,000 'unuseable ' coronavirus test kits to Israel - The Jerusalem Post

The Mossad brought 100,000 coronavirus test kits to Israel from abroad overnight Wednesday, but according to Health Ministry deputy director general Itamar Grotto, "unfortunately, what they brought is not exactly what we were lacking." Grotto said there are various components that are involved in the tests and that the Mossad did not bring back. A spokesperson for Magen David Adom explained to The Jerusalem Post that specifically, the tests were missing a patented liquid in which the testing sticks need to be dipped before a screening can be administered. Without it, the test cannot be administered. The spokesperson explained that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "using his connections around the world now" to try to obtain this liquid as early as Friday. The Mossad mission was revealed Thursday by N12 and was independently confirmed by The Jerusalem Post. The report came the same day the Health Ministry committed to increasing the number of tests conducted daily in Israel to at least 3,000 and soon to as many as 5,000.

Magen David Adom is scheduled to openits first drive-through testing center in Tel Aviv by Sunday and then five more are expected to open across the country within several additional days. On Thursday morning, the ministry sent out a note informing the public that, "because the number of examining sites has risen (20 labs) and the number of daily examinations is higher than before (more than 2,200 tests yesterday and the number continues to rise), so gathering and summarizing all the data – including the number of people who tested positive for coronavirus – will take longer." According to a follow up report by the Hebrew website Ynet, the Mossad searched for kits wherever possible and procured these 100,000 from two different countries. While the original report appeared to leave ambiguous whether the national intelligence agency had taken the test kits without permission or had obtained them by consent, the Post confirmed that the kits were provided with consent. Part of the reason for the Mossad's involvement in obtaining the kits was since some of countries involved do not have diplomatic relations with Israel and have other complex reasons for wanting to sell the kits below the radar.

"I want to thank the security forces of the State of Israel," said Health Ministry Director General Moshe Bar Siman Tov shortly after the mission was complete. He confirmed that the ministry had received the test kits from the Mossad on Thursday and they were "important and proper kits to use for our coronavirus testing." But he added that "we are continuing work with the Mossad to obtain additional necessary equipment," which as MDA explained would make using the tests possible. "We are at war," Bar Siman Tov said. "During war, we must combine forces with everyone to win."

The Post confirmed that additionally the Mossad's cybersecurity team is assisting the Health Ministry in writing special software that will be used to deal with the virus.

“This is an unusual event in which the country’s intelligence and other security agencies are working together and mobilizing to assist efforts to curb the spread of the virus,” N12 wrote in its report.

Beyond the Mossad, the Defense Ministry has been recently stepping up efforts to support the fight against the coronavirus. Defense Minister Naftali Bennett orchestrated the opening of two “coronavirus hotels” – one in Jerusalem and one in Tel Aviv – for people who have mild cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. In addition, Bennett authorized the mobilization of 2,500 IDF reservists to help deal with the continued spread of the deadly virus.

The Mossad is uniquely equipped to carry out rapid global operations efficiently, tossing out all of the red tape that other agencies must cope with. The agency has been used in the past to bring massive groups of Jews in danger around the world to Israel is practically miraculously short periods of time.

Additional Mossad operations are expected soon, which could bring up to 4 million test kits to Israel, the Post learned.

2020-03-19 10:57:01Z
https://www.jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Mossad-brought-100000-coronavirus-tests-to-Israel-report-621532