By Raphael Satter and AJ Vicens
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Officials in the United States and Israel have denied reports that their countries had signed off on the sale of Israeli spyware maker Paragon to Florida-based AE Industrial Partners.
This past week, Israeli news media reported that Paragon, founded by former Israeli intelligence officers and backed by ex-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, had been purchased by AE, an investment group that focuses on national security-related companies. On Monday, a person familiar with the deal confirmed its broad outlines to Reuters.
Israeli media outlets, without citing sources, said the deal had received approval from US and Israeli officials.
But on Friday, a senior White House official said that was not true.
“The US government never ‘approved’ this sale. This is a private transaction,” the official said. “No green light has been given for this sale.”
The Israeli military also denied the reports, according to local media, which quoted the Ministry of Defense saying that while Paragon had been in contact about the purchase, “the Ministry of Defense did not approve the sale” and that officials were still studying the transaction were.
Emails seeking comment from AE and Paragon were not immediately returned. The Israeli military did not respond to several requests for comment.
Paragon has already tried to penetrate the US surveillance market, but not without overcoming obstacles. According to a report in Wired, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement signed a one-year, $2 million contract with Paragon’s U.S. subsidiary in September. But the White House official confirmed that the contract had subsequently been suspended and reviewed.
ICE did not immediately return a message seeking comment.
