Ofek Riemer

Senior Academic

PUBLIC LECTURES

This lecture uncovers the international and Israeli history of revealing intelligence secrets. It explains why this practice has become increasingly popular among governments worldwide, and what risks and opportunities it creates for security, diplomacy, and intelligence organizations. The session includes interactive exercises that actively involve the audience in real-world dilemmas of disclosure.

Why do leaders attack the very intelligence agencies tasked with keeping their countries safe—and what happens to national security when they do? As populist leaders gain power across democracies, the relationship between intelligence organizations and political decisionmakers is undergoing profound transformation. Anchored in the lessons of Israel’s October 7 intelligence and policy failure—and drawing on additional cases from the United States, Europe, and Latin America—this lecture reveals how populism politicizes intelligence, reshapes strategic warning, and accelerates democratic erosion. It also identifies policy tools that may help mitigate these effects.

What led Hezbollah—long seen as Israel’s most dangerous enemy—to such a resounding defeat? And how could Hassan Nasrallah, who prided himself on understanding Israel better than its own leaders, misjudge events so profoundly? This lecture explores these puzzles through the lens of strategic culture, inviting audiences to reconsider how deeply rooted beliefs, narratives of resistance, and deterrence “equations” shaped Hezbollah’s fateful decisions and accelerated its unexpected decline.