Israeli intelligence veteran turned novelist Yariv Inbar speaks from the shadows, his face hidden and identity concealed under government restrictions. The Committee for Publication Approval, which oversees publications by former intelligence operatives, has mandated he use a pseudonym and avoid revealing his appearance.
"I'm fine with that," Inbar said during a recent interview, adding that the anonymity ironically serves the atmosphere of spy novels.
Yariv Inbar (pseudonym) served in key positions in Israel’s intelligence units
(Video: Mickey Schmidt)
His latest English-language thriller, "Behind the Trigger" — the translation of his Hebrew novel "The Wolf's Whisper" — hit U.S. shelves in early 2024. The book joins a growing catalog of intelligence fiction that Inbar describes as "real operations that never happened."
"None of my books describe real events, but I always treat them as if they're real operations that never happened," Inbar explained. "If they had happened, there's a very high chance that's exactly how they would've unfolded."
The author weaves authentic details from his intelligence background into fictional narratives, creating what he calls completely authentic descriptions of daily life and operations in the espionage world. His previous English translation, "Operation Bethlehem," adapted from "The Crack," has already found international readership.
But Inbar faces a complex publishing landscape following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks. While reader demand for Israeli intelligence stories remains high, traditional publishers abroad have grown reluctant to sign Israeli and even Jewish authors.
"The traditional publishing world abroad is currently avoiding signing Israeli authors, and even Jewish ones," Inbar said. "In the U.S., for example, this is very noticeable — there are even blacklists of writers."
The author receives both hate messages and negative responses to book advertisements, yet maintains that readers genuinely interested in understanding Israel continue seeking such literature.
"Behind the Trigger," set in pre-war Syria, offers readers insight into intelligence operations without revealing classified information. The book, completed in 2022 before the current conflict, provides what Inbar describes as an intimate depiction of how intelligence agencies might track targets in real-time.
"The book gives a very intimate depiction, for example, of how Israel might know, right at the start of an attack, where Iran's nuclear scientists are located at any given moment," he said.
For his fourth book, Inbar is breaking new ground by setting a story against the backdrop of an actual event — the pager operation that captured global attention. Reader requests via social media and email convinced him to tackle the subject.
"What I think really fascinates readers is imagining what might have happened behind the scenes of such a historic, epic operation," Inbar said. "I believe there are many compelling human stories there — the personal moments and decisions that ultimately lead to a phenomenal success that truly amazed the entire world."
The upcoming novel will undergo the same censorship process as his previous works, ensuring no classified information is revealed while still providing readers with a plausible narrative of how such operations might unfold.
All of Inbar's books must receive approval from Israeli censors before publication, a process he accepts as part of his commitment to national security while pursuing his literary career.