Insights on Israeli Intelligence Operations in Iran

On Tuesday, former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen disclosed that Israeli spies had “toured” Iran’s heavily fortified Fordow nuclear site on multiple occasions to gather intelligence prior to its destruction by US forces. This revelation offers a remarkable look into the extent of Israeli intelligence’s infiltration into Iran’s nuclear efforts.

Cohen, who led Israel’s Mossad from 2016 to 2021, stated, “We toured the Fordow nuclear facility many times to understand the scene,” while speaking at the Council of Galilee in northern Israel.

While Cohen didn’t specify when these operations occurred, or whether Mossad agents physically entered the facility, reports indicate it’s still uncertain if he was referencing Fordow’s internal operators or other forms of surveillance.

He emphasized the significance of the US attack on the facility as part of Israel’s ongoing struggle against Iran’s nuclear ambitions, saying, “The American bombing made all my dreams come true.”

The Fordow site presented substantial military challenges due to its location about 300 feet underground, nestled in mountains near Qom, and protected by multiple layers of rock and reinforced concrete.

The US launched an attack on Fordow on June 22, 2025, during Israel’s Operation Rising Lion, which lasted 12 days and targeted Iran’s nuclear and military assets.

As a part of this operation, seven B-2 Spirit stealth bombers flew approximately 18 hours from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, dropping 12 massive bunker buster bombs on Fordow. One of the bombers also targeted Natanz, while a US submarine fired over 20 Tomahawk cruise missiles directed at Isfahan’s facilities.

General Dan Cain, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, later revealed details about the operation: US forces specifically aimed at ventilation shafts. The first bomb was meant to break through concrete barriers that Iran had sealed over the openings, enabling further penetrative strikes.

Cohen’s comments reflect Mossad’s longstanding record of penetrating sensitive aspects of Iran’s nuclear program. During his tenure, Mossad carried out a remarkable mission in 2018, seizing Iran’s secret nuclear archives from a warehouse in Tehran, retrieving thousands of documents and files about the regime’s covert nuclear initiatives. Moreover, Israel had long kept an eye on Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, a significant scientist identified as a key figure in Iran’s nuclear weapons efforts, long before his assassination in 2020. This suggests a pattern of Israeli intelligence involvement, including the sabotage of Iran’s underground Natanz centrifuge facility.

Just days after he left Mossad in 2021, Cohen mentioned to an interviewer that he could take her to Natanz’s underground “basement,” where, as he claimed, “a centrifuge was spinning.” This highlights an extraordinary familiarity with Iran’s supposedly secure nuclear setup.

Addressing Iran’s remaining nuclear materials, Cohen argued that the regime’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium doesn’t equate to an imminent weapons program, stating, “Uranium enriched to 60% is still far from being a bomb.” However, experts warn that this level of enrichment is a significant step closer to weapons-grade material. David Albright, director of the Institute for Science and International Security, pointed out that material enriched to 60 percent could potentially be further refined into weapons-grade within days or weeks, depending on Iran’s centrifuge capabilities.

The location of Iran’s highly enriched uranium has become a key focus for both Washington and Jerusalem since the 2025 attack. Much of this stockpile is thought to be buried under damaged facilities, including underground tunnels in Isfahan, where access points were reportedly collapsed and explosive mines laid following the strike. Additionally, there are suspicions that some nuclear material was moved to Pickel Mountain, another heavily fortified site near Natanz.

Former President Donald Trump has expressed confidence in the US’s ability to monitor new Iranian nuclear activities, reiterating that Pickaxe Mountain would meet a similar fate to other facilities if Iran attempted to restore its nuclear efforts.

“I know exactly what’s going on,” Trump stated before a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He added that if a deal isn’t reached, “it will be easy to break it,” referring to military responses against Iran.

The confidence extends further. A Wall Street Journal report suggested that Trump has told aides he believes Iran is unlikely to rebuild its nuclear program during his presidency, considering the destruction of several major facilities last year. He remarked that US intelligence would likely uncover any attempts by Iran to develop its facilities further, and the threat of a US attack would serve as a continued deterrent.

Cohen’s revelations about operations at Fordow shine a light on the intelligence capabilities that underpin these threats. They demonstrate that even one of Iran’s most secure nuclear sites had been infiltrated multiple times by Israeli intelligence before the US strikes took place.