Episode 40: You still need real life spies to win wars, with Yossi Cohen

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Ask Haviv Anything

Haviv Rettig Gur

62 episodes

3 days ago

"Ask Haviv Anything" is a podcast about history, a podcast you, dear listener, will help to shape and direct, focusing not just on what I want to talk about but on what you want to learn and discuss. Nothing is off limits. We're going to talk about big and painful things, and also beautiful and fascinating things, wars and identities and painful history. And also more light-hearted things. Humor matters, especially when facing tough subjects. Join me on this journey. A podcast by Haviv Rettig Gur

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Episode 40: You still need real life spies to win wars, with Yossi Cohen

Ask Haviv Anything

1 hour 1 minute 54 seconds

2 months ago

Episode 40: You still need real life spies to win wars, with Yossi Cohen

Former Mossad director Yossi Cohen joins the podcast to talk about the war with Iran (spoiler: It isn’t over), the ayatollahs' regime (which won’t be easily felled), and his assurance that there are still strategic surprises in Mossad’s quiver.

We discuss the stubborn Israeli insistence to continue investing heavily in HUMINT, or human intelligence - spies - in an age when other major agencies have turned away from classic spycraft to cyber, signals intelligence and AI.

And we discuss how Gaza could be rebuilt and rehabilitated, who’s responsible for the failures of October 7, why Yossi has called for new elections and Yossi’s own political aspirations.

This episode was sponsored by Jason and Lauriel Klinghoffer in honor of the memory of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, two Israeli embassy staffers who were murdered in Washington, DC on May 21, 2025. They were fatally shot outside the Capital Jewish Museum after attending an event for young diplomats. Yaron and Sarah were planning to get engaged. May their memory be a blessing.

Please join us on Patreon to support this project: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/AskHavivAnything⁠.

If you would like to sponsor an episode, please email us at haviv@askhavivanything.com⁠.

Musical intro by Adam Ben Amitai.