Former Mossad head Yossi Cohen considers running for prime minister

The former head of Israel’s Mossad foreign intelligence agency, Yossi Cohen, has signaled political ambitions, hinting at a possible bid to become Israel’s future prime minister.

In an interview on Tuesday with podcaster Yasmin Lukatz, Cohen vowed to bring “real change” to Israel’s leadership, saying it is essential to confront the multiple challenges the country faces in the post–Oct. 7 era.

Cohen believes that "any real change could only come if [he] became prime minister."

Unless the Netanyahu government collapses early, Israel’s next elections are scheduled for 2026. Cohen said he would only consider entering politics once an official election date is announced.

During his tenure as the director of Mossad, Cohen developed close ties with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has consistently avoided mentioning any potential successors that he would endorse once he retires from politics. However, Netanyahu once revealed that he views Cohen and Strategic Minister Ron Dermer as the two most qualified candidates for the role of prime minister when he leaves office.

Although Cohen is considered charismatic, it remains unclear whether he has a realistic chance of becoming a prime ministerial candidate. A June poll published by Israel's Walla News suggests that a potential new party led by Cohen would only receive four mandates – below the country’s electoral threshold for entering parliament. Furthermore, the poll indicated that three of the four potential mandates would come from the opposition Change Bloc, which consists of former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s party, former Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beitenu party and Yair Lapid’s centrist Yesh Atid party. Despite being affiliated with the Likud party, Cohen was only projected to receive one single mandate from the Netanyahu-led party.

In June, Cohen signaled his political ambitions. He said that it wasn't yet "time to replace the government, but after the war, a big change is needed here."

Cohen said his family had once advised him to stay out of politics, but now they are urging him to enter the political arena.

Cohen headed Mossad from 2016 to 2021. During his tenure, the agency conducted numerous clandestine operations, including the daring 2018 operation where Mossad stole and smuggled some 100,000 files and computer records from Iran’s secret nuclear weapons program archive in Tehran.

Cohen also played a central role in advancing the Abraham Accords between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan in 2020 and has previously been involved in normalization talks with Saudi Arabia.

Cohen has also called for forceful action against the Iranian regime. In May, he stressed that Israel must do everything in its power to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

"This is a regime which openly calls for our destruction, funds terror across the region and acts nonstop to try to acquire nuclear capabilities," Cohen said. “It is a test of our unity, our resilience, and our unwavering determination to defend our people and homeland."

Domestically, Cohen has expressed support for the Israeli hostages and their families, who have vocally blamed Netanyahu for failing to secure a new deal with Hamas.

ALL ISRAEL NEWS featured Yossi Cohen in its TOP 21 Israeli figures to keep an eye on in 2021.