Ex-Mossad chief reveals agents visited Iran’s Fordow nuclear site

Former Mossad director Yossi Cohen has revealed that operatives from the Israeli intelligence agency visited Iran’s Fordow nuclear facility “many times” in the past, aiming to gain a deeper understanding of the site.

Cohen, who led Mossad from 2015 to 2021, made the remarks at a local authorities conference on Tuesday, according to Israeli media reports. “We visited the Fordow nuclear facility many times to understand the nature of the place,” he said.

Cohen did not specify when these visits took place or who was involved. Israeli media also quoted him as saying, “The Americans’ bombing of the facility was the fulfillment of all my dreams.”

His comments follow the war launched by Israel against Iran in June 2024, which it said aimed to weaken Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs—seen by Tel Aviv as an “existential threat.”

The United States joined the 12-day conflict, deploying aircraft to strike three Iranian nuclear sites in Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.

Iran’s nuclear program has long been a major point of contention between Tehran and the West, including during negotiations to end the current war launched by Israel and the US against Iran in February. Tehran continues to deny seeking to develop a nuclear weapon.

Cohen, a close associate of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has also been linked to the 2020 assassination of Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, though Israel has not commented on the matter.