Netanyahu Unveils New Mossad Head Hailing From Belarus
- 3.06.2026, 7:57
Roman Hoffman was born and lived until the age of 14 in Mozyr, Belarus.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu believes the Iranian regime is "doomed to leave." He promised that his country's military will help the Iranians do just that. It was with these words that the prime minister began the welcoming ceremony for the new head of Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, Roman Hoffman.
Netanyahu said the new head of the Mossad "has made his way independently and overcome all difficulties." For his part, Times of Israel notes that Roman Hoffman "took the position after lengthy legal appeals against the appointment."
What Netanyahu and Hoffman said
"This is a terror regime whose destiny is to leave the world. And we will help it achieve that goal - no more threatening us with nuclear bombs and thousands of deadly ballistic missiles. This is my directive to the head of Mossad," the publication quotes Netanyahu as saying. And ToI notes that the Israeli prime minister gave this directive to intelligence officers at last week's farewell ceremony for David Barnea, who retired as head of the Mossad.
Netanyahu said that "Roman made his way on his own and overcame all difficulties" - which is why "after many years of his career in the army" the prime minister had previously chosen him as his military secretary.
"This is your mission, Roman. The Mossad will continue to stand at the forefront of our struggle against Iranian aggression.... In accordance with the consistent policy we have pursued for years, we will not allow the Iranian regime to turn back the clock. We will not allow it to obtain nuclear weapons and we will not allow it to threaten our existence," Netanyahu said, referring to Hoffman.
For his part, Roman Hoffman noted that "the strategic reversal we have made against the Iranian axis" through Israeli military action against Tehran and its henchmen "has already changed the balance of power in the entire region."
"But the task is not yet complete. The essence of the Mossad is covert operations against the activities of terrorists. We will continue this mission at any cost," he promised.
Who is Hoffman
Roman Hoffman (married, father of three daughters) is considered the first Russian-speaking head of the Mossad. The fact is that Roman was born (in November 1976) and spent all of his childhood and part of his youth in the Belarusian city of Mozyr.
But now he is a Major General in the IDF, and most recently (since May 2024) was the Prime Minister's Military Secretary.
In Israel Roman Hoffman repatriated with his parents in 1990, and almost immediately the young man began to build a military career - he entered a military boarding school, served in the IDF (in 1995, in the armored forces of the Israel Defense Forces), completed the officer's course and remained in the army.
The title of Brigadier General Roman Hoffman was awarded in 2019 - he currently commands the Ha-Bashan Division. However, in 2022, Hoffman transferred the division to another general, and himself became commander of the National Ground Forces Exercise Center.
In October 2023, during the massive invasion of Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip into Israel, Hoffman, along with his driver, went on his own initiative to Sderot, where the terrorists were already present. He (along with a squad of volunteer police) engaged the militants, and was wounded. It is believed that it was because of these events that he came to Netanyahu's attention - in any case, in April 2024, the latter appointed Hoffman to the position of Military Secretary to the Prime Minister of Israel.