The main
targets are US
industrial and technical secrets, the weekly said,
quoting classified briefings on legislation that would make it easier
for Israeli citizens to get visas to enter America.
Newsweek
said a congressional staffer familiar with a briefing last January
called the testimony "very sobering ... alarming ... even terrifying",
and quoted another as saying the behavior was "damaging."
"No
other country close to the United States continues to cross the line on
espionage like the Israelis do," said a former congressional staffer
who attended another classified briefing in late 2013, according to
Newsweek.
It said that
briefing was one of several in recent months given by the Department of
Homeland Security, the State Department, the FBI and the National
Counterintelligence Directorate.
The
former congressional staffer said the intelligence agencies did not
give specifics, but cited "industrial espionage—folks coming over here
on trade missions or with Israeli companies working in collaboration
with American companies, [or] intelligence operatives being run directly
by the government, which I assume meant out of the [Israeli] Embassy."
Israel's
espionage activities in America are unrivaled and go far beyond
activities by other close allies, such as Germany, France, Britain and
Japan, counter-intelligence agents told members of the House Judiciary
and Foreign Affairs committees, Newsweek said.
"I don't think anyone was surprised by these revelations," the former aide was quoted as saying.
"But
when you step back and hear ... that there are no other countries
taking advantage of our security relationship the way the Israelis are
for espionage purposes, it is quite shocking."
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman rejected the allegations.
"We're talking about lies and falsehood, simply libel which is baseless and unfounded," he said.
Lieberman added Israel was not involved in any form of espionage against the United States, either direct or indirect in nature.
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