Several years ago, at the start of my military service as a special operations officer, the operations officer of Sayeret Matkal came to my home as part of my handover and induction process. For over an hour, he briefed me on the unit’s activities and on the operational interfaces we were expected to share.
As the meeting concluded, I asked him about his own service – his experience as a fighter and commander in Sayeret Matkal. To my surprise, he told me he was not a combat soldier at all, and that he had arrived at the unit from an entirely different professional background, unrelated to frontline combat.
“How is that possible?” I asked. “In such a critical and operationally sensitive role, wouldn’t you appoint someone who grew up operationally within the unit?”
“No,” he replied. “In Sayeret Matkal, we seek the best and most professional managers for leadership positions – not necessarily the fiercest fighters.”
Criticism over Mossad appointment
The appointment of Roman Gofman as head of the Mossad has sparked a predictable wave of criticism, centering largely on one recurring claim: that he is “not suitable” because he did not grow up within the organization. But this argument misses the truly relevant issue, which is not where he was raised organizationally but the DNA he was born with.
Israel’s security establishment, in general, especially now, does not primarily need perfect career continuity or precise institutional labeling. It needs leaders with character, courage, belief in the justice of their mission, and the ability to read reality clearly and honestly – even when that reality is uncomfortable or fails to align neatly with familiar assumptions and long-held concepts.
Israel’s security history is full of examples of appointments considered unnatural that proved, in hindsight, far wiser than they appeared at the time – alongside others that seemed ideal at the moment but turned out to be tragic mistakes. Time and again, it has been outsiders – those who did not grow up in the same box, wear the same beret, or internalize the same way of thinking – who were able to identify systemic blind spots, challenge core assumptions, and shatter dangerous conventions.
Gorfman grasped the danger
Roman Gofman is not a classical intelligence officer – and that is precisely his advantage. He carries the DNA of a fighter and a commander: combativeness, sharp operational thinking, and a deep understanding that the security environment is not something to be merely managed or stabilized, but shaped.
He demonstrated these qualities not only in battlefield command roles, but also in moments that quietly revealed far greater truths. In a documented incident with former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot, as senior generals around the table laughed dismissively at Gofman’s uncompromising call to initiate action – to apply force rather than merely contain threats – he was the only one who grasped the dangerous reality unfolding on the enemy’s side.
While those shaping Israel’s use-of-force policy responded with cynicism and condescension, Gofman showed no hesitation or regret. Standing at the podium, he pounded his fist on the table and warned those present: Wake up. You are captive to Hamas. You are prisoners of comforting messages and flawed assumptions, unwilling to look reality straight in the eye.
The Mossad is a critical national security institution – a protective shield not only for Israel, but for Jewish communities worldwide. Its unique ability to rapidly and precisely connect intelligence to operational power has earned it its status as one of the world’s most respected intelligence services. More than pulling Israel out of crises, its greatest achievements have been to prevent crises before they materialize.
Oct. 7: An excess of arrogance
Yet October 7 taught us the painful lesson that the failure that led to catastrophe was not a lack of intelligence but an excess of arrogance and misplaced confidence – a distorted interpretation of the abundant overt and covert information already on the table.
The Mossad has always drawn its strength from its exceptional pool of creative, experienced professionals.
But just as even the most gifted musicians require a skilled conductor to create a symphony, so too does the Mossad require wise, decisive leadership that brings a different perspective: operational, sharp, and sober-minded in an era of shifting threats, overlapping arenas, and constant cognitive warfare.
It may well be that the very weakness cited by Gofman’s critics will prove to be his greatest strength. His arrival from outside the organization offers the opportunity to examine entrenched processes and organizational culture with fresh, unburdened eyes – and to introduce approaches not previously attempted. That fresh perspective may enable Israel to reach faster, sharper, and more decisive outcomes against its enemies.
The writer, an IDF reserve lieutenant colonel, is CEO of the Israel Defense and Security Forum (IDSF) and serves as the operations officer of the Gaza Division in the IDF reserves.