Intelligence liaison under scrutiny, part I: Cyprus sigint
As the Gaza conflict drags into its third month, questions have only grown about the role of intelligence; whether in creating the conditions for the war, in fuelling the fighting, or in the so far abortive attempts to end it.
In the immediate aftermath of 7 October, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, that the UK was prepared to provide ‘diplomatic, intelligence, or security support.’1 Poseidon P-8 surveillance aircraft formed part of the military package dispatched to the region in the following days.2
As the Israeli response has over-shadowed the original Hamas attacks, the British Government account of its role has become more circumspect. After briefings from current and former GCHQ and MI6 officers, the i reported on 13 October that British intelligence agencies were aiding the search for hostages taken by Hamas and other militias, a mission that could be hampered by the breakdown of the electricity network inside Gaza.3
A similar emphasis was repeated by Defence Secretary Grant Shapps in a statement on 5 December:
The UK Ministry of Defence will conduct surveillance flights over the eastern Mediterranean, including operating in airspace over Israel and Gaza. The surveillance aircraft will be unmanned. They do not have a combat role and will be tasked solely to locate hostages. Only information relating to hostage rescue will be passed to the relevant authorities responsible for those rescues.4
However, Matt Kennard of Declassified UK, argues that Britain could be complicit in war-crimes in Gaza through US eavesdropping from British bases in Cyprus, and the probable transmission of the resulting intelligence to Israel.5
Declassified’s evidence include files leaked by Edward Snowden that document GCHQ’s co-operation with the US National Security Agency in Cyprus, and US intelligence sharing agreements with Israel. One such agreement, between the NSA and the Israeli National Sigint Unit, includes special provisions in relation to citizens of countries that the NSA has agreements with (Britain and the other ‘Five Eyes’ nations: Canada, Australia and New Zealand).6 This perhaps strengthens the inference that intelligence passed on by the NSA was expected to include material emanating from other Five Eyes sources.
While Declassified’s analysis has not attracted much attention from the rest of the British media, it has provoked political debate in Cyprus itself.7 Such controversies can only intensify the longer the conflict goes on.
Update: Just after I posted this piece, a Lawfare story has appeared covering the key issue of US-Israeli intel sharing in the conflict.
On Dec. 3, Chair of the House Intelligence Committee Mike Turner (R-Ohio) offered the most detail to date with regard to U.S. intelligence sharing with Israel. On Face the Nation, Turner said that the “United States is assisting in the location of Hamas leadership as Israel moves to eliminate the threat of Hamas” and that the U.S. “intelligence apparatus is working closely with Israel to try to fill some of those gaps that they clearly have.” The relative opacity with which the administration has shared information on intelligence sharing stands in contrast to past conflicts, namely the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen, during which the U.S. was more forthcoming about intelligence sharing with the Saudis under the Obama and Trump administrations.
It must be quite likely that some of the intelligence described by Turner comes from the UK sovereign base areas in Cyprus.
Next: Intelligence liaison on under scrutiny, Part II: Qatar and cryptodiplomacy.
Rowena Mason, Rishi Sunak says UK is ‘poised’ to offer Israel military help if required, The Guardian, 9 October 2023.
Dan Sabbagh, UK to send navy ships and spy planes to support Israel, Guardian, 12 October 2023.
Richard Holmes, UK intelligence agencies are helping Israeli efforts to locate Gaza hostages, the i, 13 October 2023.
Grant Shapps, Middle East: UK Military Deployments, House of Commons Hansard Volume 742: debated on Tuesday 5 December 2023.
Matt Kennard, U.S. SPIES HAVE ‘WIDE RANGE’ OF FACILITIES ON UK’S CYPRUS BASE NEAR GAZA—AND SHARE MATERIAL ‘DAILY’ WITH ISRAEL, Declassified UK, 1 December 2023.
Andria Kades, Cyprus ‘kept in the dark’ on use of British bases for Israel-Gaza war, Cyprus Mail, 9 December 2023.