Lake Maggiore boat incident

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Lake Maggiore boat incident
LagoMaggiore.jpg
Lake Maggiore in 2009
Date28 May 2023 (2023-05-28)
Location Lake Maggiore, Italy
Deaths4

On 28 May 2023, houseboat Gooduria capsized in the Northern Italian Lake Maggiore, killing four people amongst the twenty-three on board. [1] [2] The incident attracted attention when it became clear that almost all of the people on board were associated with the Italian and Israeli national intelligence agencies. [3] [4]

Out of the four people who died, two had been currently working for the Italian Intelligence Service, [3] and one for the Mossad. [5] All people on board, except the captain and his wife, were employees or ex-employees of intelligence or defence services. [4] [6] [7] The ten Israeli survivors were flown back to Israel on a military aircraft before questioning could take place. [3] [6]

The meeting on the boat had initially been described as a birthday party. [8] Later reports connected the meeting to a joint operation relating to "Iranian non-conventional weapons capabilities". [9] The agents had been investigating local industry and Russian residents of the region with ties to the Iranian military. [10] [11]

At the funeral of the Israeli agent, which was held in Ashkelon four days after the incident, Mossad director David Barnea gave a eulogy. [12]

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References

  1. ↑ "Israeli among four killed in boating accident in Italy". The Jerusalem Post . Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  2. ↑ "Italy: Agents die when boat capsizes on Lake Maggiore". BBC News . 30 May 2023. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 "Lake Maggiore tour boat that sank was carrying Israeli and Italian security personnel". The Times of Israel . Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  4. 1 2 Giuffrida, Angela; Holmes, Oliver (2 June 2023). "Lake Maggiore deaths: why were Italian and Israeli secret service agents on a boat in northern Italy?". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  5. ↑ Balmer, Crispian; Chacar, Henriette (31 May 2023). Williams, Alison (ed.). "Dead Israeli agent flown home after Italy boat accident" . Reuters . Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Israel: Retired Mossad agent, still 'devoted to state security,' died on capsized boat". The Times of Israel . Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  7. ↑ Nadeau, Barbie Latza (31 May 2023). "All passengers on boat that sank on Italy lake had worked for security or defense services". CNN . Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  8. ↑ Rothwell, James; Squires, Nick (30 May 2023). "Retired Mossad agent and two spies drown in mysterious incident on Italian lake". The Telegraph . Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  9. ↑ "Report: Mossad Agent Who Drowned in Northern Italy Was Part of Mission Targeting Iranian Weapons". Haaretz. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
  10. ↑ "Russian oligarchs and Iranian drones: New spy details about capsized boat in Italy". i24NEWS. 1 June 2023. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  11. ↑ Di Feo, Gianluca (2 June 2023). "Gli 007 naufragati al lago Maggiore e l'azione segreta contro i traffici di armi strategiche" [007s shipwrecked at Lake Maggiore and covert action against strategic arms deals]. la Repubblica (in Italian). Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  12. ↑ "Mossad agent who died in Italy boat capsizing laid to rest in Israel". The Jerusalem Post . Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
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