Strategic Assessment

This essay discusses the lessons learned from the major failures in intelligence work in Israel vis-à-vis the prime minister and the security cabinet since before the Yom Kippur War, the relative progress made since then in integrating all the elements of the intelligence community in the decision making process, and the lapses that still remain. The essay proposes establishing a small staff body, a “Pluralistic Desk,” that will be directly subordinate to the prime minister and part of the Prime Minister’s Bureau. The head of this entity will be appointed by the prime minister; the staff will comprise a small number of high ranking figures with experience in intelligence work, particularly research and assessment, who represent all the entities in the intelligence community, as well as high ranking people with experience in operational command positions. This new entity will enable the formulation of an independent, comprehensive view of political-security affairs based upon the information and assessments provided by the intelligence community as a whole, with emphasis on advance warning and on the close relationship between intelligence, decisions, and implementation of preparation and response processes.