Israelis Express Shock Over Spy Case in U.S. : Statement Widely Interpreted as Admission of Lower-Level Involvement; Firings Hinted

In a statement widely interpreted here as an admission of lower-level involvement, Israeli political leaders Sunday expressed “shock and consternation” over the case of a U.S. Navy intelligence analyst accused of selling defense secrets to Israel.

The statement, released by Israel’s Foreign Ministry, pledged that if there has been “a deviation” from longstanding policy against such intelligence-gathering in the United States, “the necessary conclusions will be drawn”--an Israeli euphemism meaning that those found responsible will be fired.

Substantive Comment

Sunday’s was the most substantive official comment to emerge here since Navy analyst Jonathan J. Pollard was arrested Thursday outside the Israeli Embassy in Washington. U.S. authorities said Pollard admitted receiving $50,000 in return for defense secrets he sold to Israel and Pakistan.

The Israeli press Sunday quoted U.S. media reports that Pollard had sold secret codes for intercepting U.S. Navy satellite transmissions and other communications.

In its only previous official comment, the Foreign Ministry said last Friday that “we do not have the slightest idea about this matter.”

The new Israeli statement came after a full day of intensive, top-level consultations that underlined concern here that the affair could damage Israel’s most important international relationship.

Israel radio reported that Secretary of State George P. Shultz had expressed irritation over the incident in a weekend meeting with Moshe Arens, Israeli minister without portfolio.

Senior political sources here said that Foreign Minister Yitzhak Shamir cabled Shultz on Sunday with a more detailed report on the affair than the brief statement released to the press.

“Israel’s political leadership received with shock and consternation the reports from Washington according to which an employee of the U.S. Navy was accused of espionage for Israel,” according to the public statement, which the Foreign Ministry coordinated with the offices of Prime Minister Shimon Peres, Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin and “other elements” in the government.

“Actions of this kind in the United States stand in total contradiction to the policy of the Israeli government to refrain from any intelligence activity related to the United States in view of the close and special relations of friendship prevailing between the two countries,” the statement added. The ministry said “a thorough examination” is under way to discover any possible deviation from the policy.

The fact that the statement referred only to the political leadership was widely seen here as confirmation of lower-level involvement.

(The text of the Israeli statement was also made public in Washington by the Israeli Embassy, but an embassy spokeswoman said she knew nothing about a cable from Shamir to Shultz. The State Department also said it had no knowledge of such a cable.)

Admission of Involvement

Israel television said in its Sunday night news broadcast that “from the official statement, we see for the first time an admission that the Israeli intelligence services are involved in the spy affair.”

A senior government official confirmed that the statement was intended to stress that “in any case, it’s not something that was ordered by the political echelon.” Another official said there was “probably” some truth in the charge of Israeli involvement, and a third called the whole affair “a real mess.” If Israel was involved, the major questions remain: Who approved the operation, and who will be punished for it? Speculation here centered on the Mossad, Israel’s equivalent of the CIA.

The head of the Mossad, probably the best known of five Israeli intelligence organizations, reports to the prime minister’s office.

‘A Grave Mistake’

Asked by the independent newspaper Haaretz if it was conceivable that such an action could take place without high-level directives from Jerusalem, former Mossad chief Isser Harel replied: “Theoretically this is possible, even though, as a rule, activity such as this is not carried out without directives from above. If this took place with the government’s knowledge,” he added, “then this is a grave mistake on the political level.”

Israel television said that “from the information that has leaked so far, it appears as if Pollard was operating for many years, since he was in Israel as a volunteer” 11 years ago.

Israel has had five different prime ministers in that time, three of whom--Peres, Rabin and Shamir--are in the current government. The other two are the late Golda Meir and the retired Menachem Begin.

Peres, Rabin and Shamir met with “some other officials” on the Pollard affair early Sunday morning, before the regular meeting of the Israeli Cabinet. According to one government source, there were “several opinions” about what, if any, statement to make.

The United States is Israel’s principal financial and political backer. It is providing $7 billion in military and economic aid in the 1985 and 1986 fiscal years. And Washington has frequently used its veto power in the U.N. Security Council to kill resolutions condemning Israeli actions.