| Formation | 2002; 23 years ago (2002) |
|---|---|
| Founded at |  Israel |
| Purpose | Research on intelligence and terrorism |
Official language | Hebrew, English |
Head | Reuven Erlich |
TheIntelligence and Terrorism Information Center (ITIC), also known asMeir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center in honor ofMeir Amit, is an Israel-based research group. ITIC has close ties to theIsrael Defense Forces.[1] Its reports on theIsraeli–Palestinian conflict andIsraeli-Lebanese conflict have received media attention.
The Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center was founded in 2001 as part of theCenter for Special Studies,[2] when theIsraeli Defense Forces wanted to analyze and publicize hundreds of Palestinian documents captured duringOperation Defensive Shield. According to theJerusalem Post, some of the documents directly implicatedYasser Arafat in terrorism.[3]
ITIC's head, retiredIsrael Defense Forces Reuven Erlich, cited ITIC's advantage as its workforce with experience in theIsraeli intelligence community, including counterterrorism experts.[3][4][5][6]
The organization has had close ties with Israel's defense establishment[7][6] and maintained an office at the Israeli Defense Ministry as of 2006.[6] As of 2006, ITIC received some funding from the Israeli government,[8] and in 2009 was receiving support from theAmerican Jewish Congress.[7] The institute's reports are mostly derived from open sources, but it is also well-networked with the Israeli intelligence community.[9][7] The head of ITIC, IDF colonel Reuven Ehrlich, denied in 2018 that ITIC was a "public relations shop" for the Israeli military, but acknowledged that their reports "often happen to turn out to be very good material for public relations for Israel".[3]
Several former members of the Israeli intelligence community (Mossad, Military Intelligence, theShin Bet, andNativ) have criticized the "symbiotic" relationship between the center andIsraeli military intelligence and the center's establishment, arguing that the connection of military intelligence with a propaganda body would be detrimental to "objective" and "ideologically unbiased" analysis.[4]
During the2006 Lebanon War, ITIC prepared a 300-page report for theAmerican Jewish Congress containing a dossier of video and testimony accusingHezbollah of using civilians as human shields during the conflict. The report was prepared by a team led by Reuven Ehrlich, a military intelligence expert according to theAssociated Press.[6]
During the2008-2009 Gaza War, ITIC published a report about theuse of human shields by Hamas. According to the report, Hamas methodically built its military infrastructure in the heart of population centers. The report included photographs of Hamas militants manufacturing and storing weapons inside houses and of Israeli soldiers finding weapons hidden in a mosque in northern Gaza duringOperation Hot Winter in 2008. ITIC contends that Hamas not only hid among the population, but made a main component of its combat strategy "channeling" the Israeli military into the most densely populated areas to fight.[7]
The institute reported in 2010 that the United Kingdom had become a strategically important hub for Hamas, especially for online and TV media. In response, Member of ParliamentLouise Ellman noted that she had previously raised concerns to theUK Home Secretary. ThenMinister of State for SecurityDavid Hanson said that the UK government was assessing whether to include the website on a list of sites to be blocked from school and college networks.[5]
In 2011,McGill University professor Rex Brynen stated that the ITIC published a report praising UNRWA summer camps for teaching Palestinian children the values of "peace and coexistence", but later backtracked on that claim due to political pressure.[10]
The Jerusalem Post covered an ITIC report that said top Iranian and Hamas officials had met at least four times in 2023 ahead of the2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The report identified Hezbollah as Iran's "preferred strategic arm".[9]
ITIC has criticized the verification methods of the left-wing human rights groupB'Tselem for Gaza casualty numbers during conflicts, such asOperation Protective Edge.[11]
The center's research staff, some of whom are former Military Intelligence officers, compile weekly reports that are published online at their website.[12]
An ITIC report onOperation Cast Lead was found among training materials for USlaw enforcement inBlueLeaks files along with presentation documents from the IDF Strategic Division andThe Dado Center.[13]
