Israel and Australia are involved in a spat about the death of a young man held in an Israeli prison. It is a cloak-and-dagger tale. Ben Zygier, who is said to have hanged himself in 2010 after being detained in conditions of great secrecy, held dual citizenship. Media reports in the two countries suggest the former Mossad employee had threatened to reveal details of the way Israeli intelligence agents carry other nations’ passports on overseas operations.
The abuse of foreign documents is a cause of some anger among Israel’s allies. The British and Australian governments lodged protests when their passports were used by Mossad operatives who travelled to Dubai three years ago to kill a leading figure in the Palestinian Hamas movement. Perhaps it is coincidence, but the operation took place in the same year Mr Zygier was arrested. The fear is that such identity theft puts at risk innocent citizens of the third countries.
The squall will probably pass, not least because there seem to be sensitive questions about how much was known by Australian spooks. Behind this story, however, lies a more important one. It is about how the sorry state of Israeli-Australian relations reflects a wider trend. Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has been losing Israel the support of its best friends. This is something that should worry anyone concerned with Israel’s long-term security.