Israel has fined an Israeli security consulting firm for negotiating a deal to provide arms and military training to Guinea's military junta without the state's prior approval, a Defense Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.
The spokesman, Shlomo Dror, said the ministry fined Global CST for dealing with the West African nation's military government last year. He would not disclose the sum of the fine but said Israel intervened before any deal was concluded.
Global CST is run by Yisrael Ziv, a retired Israeli general whose career included commanding the Gaza Strip area and heading the military's powerful operations branch. Since retiring, he has worked as a consultant in Colombia and Georgia, according to reports in the Israeli daily Haaretz.
Israel has a long history of sending mercenaries to African countries, dating back to the 1950s. But today, Israel's Defense Ministry says it closely supervises military exports, including training by private contractors, and denies permits to operate in nations with questionable human rights records.
By: Brant
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