Report: Mossad chief visited New Delhi days before attack on Israeli officials

Mossad chief Tamir Pardo visited New Delhi just days before an attack on Israeli officials in the Indian capital this week, Indian media reported on Thursday, highlighting the extent to which Israeli intelligence was in the dark regarding possibility of a terror attack taking place in the country.

On Monday, the wife of an Israeli diplomat was moderately wounded when a car bomb exploded outside of Israel's embassy in New Delhi.

The attack was one of three targeting Israeli officials abroad this week, with failed attempts to strike at diplomats reported the same day in Tbilisi and on the following day in Bangkok.

Neither attack was preceded by a specific intelligence warning.

Citing Indian officials, a report in the Times of India on Thursday placed Pardo's visit a week ago, saying he met with the heads of local intelligence. The report even quoted the Mossad chief as saying that Israeli citizens felt safer in India than in Turkey, the Caucusus or South America.

Pardo reportedly led a delegation of top Mossad officials, who discussed the possibility of Iranian counter attacks against Israeli targets. However, according to the report, the possibility of an attack taking place in New Delhi was not discussed.

The Times of India report also indicated that Israel's deputy envoy to India, Yahel Vilan, and the embassy's security officer, Shahar Gal Nero, sent a letter on February 1 to the New Delhi police warning of the possibility of attacks targeting Israeli citizens ahead of the anniversary of Mughniyah's assassination, and following attacks against Iranian nuclear scientists.

However, the letter did not detail any specific intelligence regarding the possibility of an attack taking place on Indian soil.

Indian intelligence officials were quoted as saying they feared increased use of magnetic bombs such as that used in the New Delhi attack.

One source indicated to the newspaper that an Indian intelligence agency had intercepted a phone call mentioning that Pakistani terrorists could make use of such explosive devices.

A report of the phone call was passed on to all Indian security agencies shortly prior to the attack on Monday, which represented the first time such bombs were known to have been used in India.

Haaretz