Name Michael Ross | ||
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Education London School of Economics and Political Science | ||
Michael Ross (born 12 July 1961) is a Canadian expert on intelligence gathering and a former Mossad officer, or "combatant" with a focus upon human source intelligence collection (Humint). Ross speaks upon intelligence issues and publishes articles, and he is the author of the book The Volunteer: The Incredible True Story of an Israeli Spy on the Trail of International Terrorists. Ross advocates vigilance and the continual improvement of intelligence collection systems in order to protect free societies. In August 2007, Ross authored an article in the Canadian daily, National Post entitled, "Obama got it right" wherein he wrote that Osama bin Laden was hiding in Pakistan having been provided sanctuary by Pakistan's Directorate for Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI). Ross urged then presidential nominee, Barack Obama, to engage in unilateral intelligence and military action in Pakistan to hunt and kill al-Qaeda leaders including Osama bin Laden.
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Early biography
Ross was born and raised as an Anglican in British Columbia. Following high school, he joined the Canadian Forces, and served in the since-disbanded 2nd Special Service Force at CFB Petawawa. After he was discharged, he toured Europe. In 1982, he arrived in Israel, planning to volunteer on a kibbutz before returning to Canada. After living in Israel for a while Ross decided stay and convert to Judaism, and he subsequently married an Israeli woman named Dahlia. Ross was conscripted into the Israel Defense Forces and assigned to the Combat Engineering Corps. He served in the West Bank, where his unit conducted patrols and searches for wanted terrorists and terror cells. In 1985, he was transferred to a demolitions platoon of the Golani Brigade and deployed to the Israeli security zone in southern Lebanon. His unit was tasked with keeping the roads free of ambushes and IEDs. His only combat experience was when he participated in an ambush on two Hezbollah vehicles, during which eight militants were killed.
Mossad career
After the end of his military service, the Mossad recruited him. After repeated interviews, a medical examination and a polygraph test, he was put through an intense training program, and in 1989, he was accepted into the Mossad. As part of his preparation for service in the Mossad, Ross attended The London School of Economics. He served under a form of non-official cover, which involves working under covers other than as an Israeli diplomat and therefore lacks diplomatic immunity, a status which the Mossad refers to as "combatant". Ross's background and language skills gave him excellent access to sources of intelligence and the ability to travel without suspicion of being an Israeli officer. For many years, Ross was the Mossad's man in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although primarily a field operative, Ross also served in an official liaison position working with the American Central Intelligence Agency and FBI Counterterrorism Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. In 2000, Ross was awarded a divisional citation by former Mossad Deputy Director and Head of the National Security Council, Ilan Mizrahi. Ross left the Mossad under honorable circumstances in late 2001 with the equivalent military rank of Sgan Aluf (Lieutenant-Colonel). He subsequently returned to Canada.
Ross's work with the Mossad was spent almost entirely in counter-terrorism. Ross played an integral part in the investigation and subsequent joint operation with the FBI that resulted in the capture of Fawzi Mustapha Assi, a Hezbollah operative procuring weapons technology in the United States. Assi was procuring weapons material at the behest of senior Hezbollah leaders, Imad Mughniyeh and Hassan Hilu al-Lakkis.
In addition to sub-Saharan Africa, he served in the Mossad's CAESAREA division in Syria, Azerbaijan, North Africa, and Iran. At Mossad headquarters he was involved with the TEVEL division, responsible for liaison relationships with allied governments on counter-terrorism, specifically in prevention and investigation of attacks upon embassies. Ross played an integral role in the capture of the al-Qaeda confederates responsible for the 1998 United States embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania. He later served in the Mossad's BITZUR division, responsible for prevention of terrorist attacks upon Jewish communities worldwide. Ross assisted the escape of Jews from Zimbabwe threatened by the Robert Mugabe regime. Ross is credited with bolstering intelligence ties between Israel and Azerbaijan and the interception of two Iranian agents attempting to procure weaponry in South Africa.
Book publication
Ross wrote The Volunteer in 2007. The tone of the book is pro-Israeli; Ross sees Israel as an example of civilization's defense against terrorism. He does not appear to draw distinctions between the aims of Islamist Palestinian nationalism and al-Qaeda's stated goal to drive Americans and western influence out of all Muslim nations. Ross often cites examples where Iran covertly supports and sponsors Sunni terrorist movements such as al-Qaeda, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas as well as the Taliban. His discussions of intelligence operations have been described as realistic and not movie-like.
Book
Association with Ishmael Jones
Ross is a friend of Ishmael Jones, a former deep-cover CIA officer and author of The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture, with whom he collaborates. There is speculation that Ross and Jones operated against similar intelligence targets while working for their respective clandestine services.