New Mossad Chief Roman Gofman Visits Western Wall After Taking Office

Incoming Mossad Director Maj. Gen. Roman Gofman made his first official visit to the Western Wall on Friday morning, shortly after formally taking office as head of Israel’s intelligence agency.

Gofman arrived at the Western Wall plaza at the start of his tenure in one of the most sensitive and central positions in Israel’s security establishment. The visit served as a symbolic opening to his term, combining the weight of the new role with prayer at the Jewish people’s holiest accessible site.

He was received by Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, rabbi of the Western Wall and the holy sites, who accompanied him during the visit. Together, they toured the plaza and recited chapters of Tehillim, offering prayers for Gofman’s success as he assumes leadership of the Mossad.

The prayers also focused on the security of the State of Israel, the success of IDF soldiers, Mossad personnel and all members of Israel’s security forces operating across the country’s active fronts.

The visit came as Israel continues to face a complex security reality, with ongoing threats from Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and other terrorist organizations. Gofman enters the role at a time when the Mossad is expected to remain deeply involved in Israel’s wider campaign against Iranian influence, terrorism financing, hostage-related efforts and regional intelligence challenges.

At the end of the visit, Gofman followed the traditional custom and placed a personal note between the stones of the Western Wall.

He then signed the official visitor book at the site, choosing to write the verse: “Netzach Yisrael lo yeshaker,” meaning, “The eternity of Israel will not lie.”

The phrase, drawn from the Book of Samuel, has long been used in Israeli public life as an expression of national endurance, faith and historical continuity. Coming from the new Mossad chief at the start of his term, the words carried an added symbolic weight, linking Israel’s security mission to the deeper story of Jewish survival and resilience.

Gofman’s visit also followed an emotional inauguration period in which he was reunited with United Hatzalah medics who helped save his life on October 7, after he was seriously wounded while fighting terrorists in southern Israel. That background gives his entry into the Mossad role a particularly personal dimension, moving from the battlefield and recovery to one of the highest posts in Israel’s defense establishment.

The Western Wall Heritage Foundation said the visit included prayers for the State of Israel and all those defending it.