Ukraine: Russia allegedly provided Iran with a vital target bank inside Israel
The Jerusalem Post quotes a Ukrainian intelligence official as saying that Russia categorized targeted energy sites into three groups based on their strategic importance.
An Israeli newspaper revealed that “Russia provided Iran with a list of vital targets related to energy infrastructure inside Israel, to be struck with precision by missiles.” Such information could implicate Moscow in the ongoing war in the Middle East, particularly amid deteriorating Russian-Israeli relations.
The Israeli newspaper The Jerusalem Post reported, citing an unnamed source close to Ukrainian intelligence, that “Russian intelligence services provided Iran with a detailed list of 55 vital targets linked to energy infrastructure inside Israel.” Moscow has so far issued no official comment on the matter.
Since February 24, 2022, Russia has been conducting a military offensive against its neighbor Ukraine, conditioning its end on Kyiv abandoning its bid to join Western military entities, which Kyiv considers to be “interference” in its internal affairs.
The newspaper added: “The report, which highlights the deepening military and intelligence cooperation between Moscow and Tehran, indicates that the exchanged information would enable Iran to conduct precise missile strikes against Israel’s energy network.”
According to the same source, “the targeted sites were divided into three categories based on their strategic importance.” “The first level includes critical production facilities, whose destruction would paralyze the national energy system.”
The report specifically cites the Orot Rabin power station as a primary target. Orot Rabin is the largest electricity generation plant in Israel, located on the Mediterranean coast northwest of the city of Hadera.
According to the newspaper, the second level includes “major urban and industrial energy centers, mainly located in central Israel and serving large densely populated areas.” The third level includes “local infrastructure, including substations supporting industrial zones and small power plants.”
The newspaper added: “The Russian assessment of Israel’s vulnerability highlights that its electricity grid, unlike that of many European countries, is highly isolated.”
“Given that Israel is considered an ‘energy island’ that does not import electricity from neighboring countries, Russian intelligence reportedly informed Iran that damaging even a small number of central components could lead to a complete and prolonged collapse of the electrical system, causing widespread power outages and technical failures that would be difficult to repair.”
Since February 28, Israel and the United States have been conducting a war against Iran that has resulted in thousands of Iranian casualties, while Tehran has responded with missile and drone attacks toward Israel.
Iran also targets what it describes as American sites and interests in Arab countries. However, some attacks have resulted in casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure, which has been condemned by the affected countries.
