Former Mossad officer’s appointment highlights Tel Aviv University’s military ties

A former senior Mossad officer’s appointment as Tel Aviv University’s vice-president for industry relations and entrepreneurship has been seen as another sign of the university’s close ties to Israel’s defence establishment, Local Call reported on Tuesday. According to the report, the university (TAU) announced last month that Hagai Itkin, a former officer in Israel’s foreign intelligence agency, had been appointed to the role based on his previous experience, including “senior positions in the defence establishment”. The university added that Itkin had held positions on campus for several years before his appointment, building “connections and links with the high-tech industry”. Itkin retired from the Mossad in 2020 after nearly 20 years of service. In 2022, he told Israel’s Channel 12 News that he had worked in the agency’s technology department in the years leading up to his retirement. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters “The State of Israel has all the capabilities required to carry out targeted assassinations,” Itkin said when asked about alleged Israeli assassinations of Iranian scientists. He added that Israel carries out assassinations “while giving maximum consideration to collateral damage and to innocent people”. Universities' military ties Meanwhile, TAU will host the “DefenseTech Week” conference next month for the second consecutive year, further strengthening its links with the defence establishment, according to Local Call. The university described the December event as “a premier gathering for experts in defence technology”, showcasing “Israel’s cutting-edge solutions that are addressing global security challenges”. The conference website said Israel was ideally placed to host the event because it was “at the forefront of defence technology development”. It added that the conference would offer “invaluable insights into how Israel’s advancements are shaping the global defence landscape”. TAU is co-organising the event with the Directorate of Defence Research and Development at Israel’s Defence Ministry. Israeli and US arms companies are among its sponsors. 'Israeli academia often adopted militaristic rhetoric and continued to cooperate in various ways with the military, Israel’s security establishment, and the arms industry' - New Profile, Israeli NGO Shield AI, a US-based defence technology company developing autonomous pilots, is one of 22 sponsors. Others include Israel’s three major arms manufacturers - Rafael, Elbit and Israel Aerospace Industries - as well as US defence giant Lockheed Martin. Speakers include senior military and defence ministry officials, former US Army officers, arms industry executives and academics from Israel and the US. Local Call said that by appointing Itkin and hosting the conference, TAU “inevitably takes a stand on the connection between war, weapons, and business”. It accused the university of ignoring the use of Israeli arms industry products to suppress, expel and kill Palestinians in the occupied territories. The university’s efforts to strengthen its ties with the Israeli defence establishment, the report added, “reflect a deep and ongoing ideological, political, and economic line of Israel’s universities”. The close relationship between Israeli universities and the military is not new. According to New Profile, an Israeli NGO dedicated to demilitarising Israeli society, Israeli academic institutions remained silent during the genocide in Gaza, as Israel committed war crimes and crimes against humanity. “Worse, Israeli academia often adopted militaristic rhetoric and continued to cooperate in various ways with the military, Israel’s security establishment, and the arms industry,” the group said last April. Middle East Eye has previously reported that TAU boasted of helping to develop live dog cameras for the Israeli army’s canine unit. An academic at the university also called for Gaza’s population to be starved and exterminated.