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What exactly did the Mossad contribute in corona fight? Numbers revealed

The Mossad took the lead in procuring hard-to-find medical equipment. The numbers have only just been published. 

By World Israel News Staff

The Mossad was credited during the height of the pandemic with performing dramatic acquisitions of essential medical equipment, competing with the rest of the world also in need of supplies to combat the disease.

But what was its contribution exactly?

Hebrew daily Yediot Ahronot provided the exact numbers as the Mossad transferred control of the joint procurement command center to the Health Ministry on Tuesday.

The paper says the Mossad obtained 2.5 million goggles, plus another 5.5 million expected to arrive, 80 million surgical masks with 142 million on the way, 1.3 million 95-N masks with 14 million still to arrive, 180 million gloves, and over 33 tons of disinfectant products.

Israel’s secret service also acquired 4 million fireproof protective overalls and more than 2 million coronavirus tests. On its list of pharmaceuticals, the Mossad located 47 different types, including anesthetics and insulin.

Yediot notes that the joint procurement command center which the Mossad led also helped produced protective equipment within Israel amounting to more than  6 million different items.

It’s not clear how many respirators the Mossad obtained. Yediot reports that Israel will have nearly 10,000 more by July. However, a fraction of these are domestically produced and it’s not clear if all were made under the auspices of the joint procurement command center. Several independent efforts got underway to produce ventilators domestically in recent months.

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On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked Mossad Director Yossi Cohen for leading the joint procurement command center.

“I assigned you, along with the Defense Ministry, to deal with procurement and acquisition. You did this exceptionally well; the results speak for themselves,” Netanyahu said.

Cohen said, “We have been involved in this campaign for over two-and-a-half months. We prepared – at your request – to assist the State of Israel regarding all matters of procurement and acquisition.”