Tuesday 18 August 2009

“Israeli Officer Oversaw the Installation of Barouk Internet Company”


“Israeli Officer Oversaw the Installation of Barouk Internet Company”

18/08/2009 Al-Akhbar newspaper quoted sources close to the case of an illegal internet company in Barouk as saying that the equipments confiscated by specialists from the Telecommunications ministry are manufactured in favor of an Israeli company named Ceragon, which is headquartered in Tel Aviv. The sources added that the equipments are equipped with high complexity and sophisticated systems.

According to the source, this internet company receives up to 10 gigabytes, while the needs of the operation of the Internet in Saudi Arabia do not reach more than 3.5 GB.

“The internet company in Barouk provides internet services mainly towards the South, Northern Bekaa, and the southern suburbs of Beirut despite the fact that specialists have confirmed that the operation of the equipment systems contains software that can identify the location of portable computers and cellular telephones connected to the Internet. It can also follow-up information being exchanged by the devices related to the computer station,” the source told the newspaper.

A well-known source said that an Israeli retired security officer, who has a Cyprus nationality, came to Lebanon in November 2006 and oversaw the installation of such equipments.

The Israeli company “Ceragon” embraces among its managers and directors a large number of Israelis who have served at sensitive positions in the Israeli army, most notably:

Zohar Zisabil (member of the administrative board), he served between 1982 and 1999 as chief of electronic researches apartment in the Israeli Defense ministry.
Avshalom Battier (member of the administrative board), is a retired colonel in the Israeli army.
Eyal Assa (director of sales and operating) worked for six years in the Israeli army’s elite unit which is specialized in researches and development.
Aran Westman (Deputy Executive Director) served for seven years in the researches and development department in the Israeli Ministry of Defense.

The Telecommunication Ministry issued a statement on Friday saying that Telecom Minister Jebran Bassil ordered shutting down the Barouk station on August 4, 2009 and called for submitting the case to the judiciary.

No comments: