Posted on 02/25/2015 8:22:48 AM PST by sukhoi-30mki
When South Africa found out that Israel had obtained stolen anti-tank missile technology in 2010, the South Africans politely asked for their ball back, according to a Mossad secret service document.
Rather than suffer embarrassment on a global stage, or be labeled a tattletale, South Africa suffered in silence and covered up the theft, according to the secret document, which was leaked to Al Jazeera.
In 2010, South Africa arrested two men for stealing blueprints for the Mokopa air-to-ground missile, along with other secret weapons technology, and attempting to sell them to intelligence police posing as Russian buyers in a sting operation.
Prosecutors, however, opted not to fully disclose the extent to which an Israeli businessman was involved.
Journalists were fed a false account of events, and reported that Israelis had been offered the materials but "were not interested," and had dismissed the black market salesmen as "a joke,” Al Jazeera reported.
In reality, that Israeli businessman was very interested and likely purchased the blueprints before passing them along to Mossad, Al Jazeera reported, citing an Israeli top-secret cable.
When contacted by South Africa, Israel said it had no desire to sift through its citizen’s dirty deeds, and refused to investigate how the man came to possess the pilfered blueprints. So in a “c’mon, bro” moment, South Africa requested at least give back the documents, which Israel granted, on one condition: Don’t hold grudges.
“In light of the strong cooperation between our [intelligence] services,” Mossad said in a top-secret letter to South Africa, “we can at least return the missile plans to you.”
"Since … an Israeli citizen, Mr. Yitzhak Talia, is involved in this affair,” the letter continued, “we would appreciate receiving confirmation from the competent authority that the Israeli citizen will not be prosecuted or involved in legal issues in South Africa concerning this affair, before we relay the plans to you."
South Africa apparently consented to those terms, because no Israeli has been directly involved in legal issues since.
Meanwhile, the two other suspects in the case pleaded guilty and received either prison time or a fine.
Read more: http://sputniknews.com/news/20150225/1018710893.html#ixzz3Sm5ZtH19
RE: South Africa Asks Israel if it Can Have its Missile Blueprints Back
They didn’t keep any copies of the blue prints at all?
LOL, you should have had copies made
Maybe the South Africans use old copy machines, where blue doesn't show up very well. /S
From what I hear from several folks, the plans aren't the real issue.
This is politics to embarrass a faction within Israel for stealing what they could have gotten for a pittance from South Africa anyway.
JMHo
Yes, the plans were on parchment, written in India ink, with sharpened quills, and there's not a spare set twixt here and Aberdeen.
Included in the scrolls were the plans of Italian minefields off the coast of Istria stolen by the Austro-Hungarian Fleet, the location of Judge Crater, and the Balkan Monastery in which the Lost Dauphin of France is being kept against his will.
This is pure Sherlock Holmes.
Or maybe the Israelis really weren’t stealing in the first place!
Much of South Africa’s advanced defense industry owes its origins to Israeli assistance in the 70s.
I stopped reading here: "according to the secret document, which was leaked to Al Jazeera. "
By the time the Israelis handed the copies back they had added a number of bells and whistles and the original plans had been rendered obsolete by a number of more advanced iterations.
Good point. It’s possible that SA is actually asking to have access to something they didn’t really create.
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