After a tourist boat on Italy's Lake Maggiore capsized, carrying Israeli officials, Israeli media Walla! reported that the boat trip, which killed four, was not planned in advance. The trip was planned last minute after the officials missed their flight after their covert meeting was extended. 

According to the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, the intel officers attended confidential meetings in Lombardy for information exchange and classified documents. 

Walla! added that one of the present officials knew the captain of the yacht and agreed to host a small birthday party for one of the officials on it. Per Italian and Israeli media, the boat capsized due to the captain's negligence of the weather forecast, which predicted rough winds and waves. 

#Varese, imbarcazione ribaltata nel lago Maggiore: recuperato il corpo senza vita della quarta persona, l’ultima delle quattro segnalate come disperse. Concluse le operazioni di ricerca da parte dei #vigilidelfuoco, inizia il recupero dell'imbarcazione [#29maggio 8:00] pic.twitter.com/NZAcdBe77r

— Vigili del Fuoco (@vigilidelfuoco) May 29, 2023

Italian reports stated that 18 of the 20 survivors were former or present intelligence agents who were swiftly escorted out of hospitals and hotels "so as not to leave a trace."

According to the Israeli occupation's Foreign Ministry, the killed Israeli man, identified as Shimoni Erez, was a retired Mossad officer. The Israeli Channel 12 said the man had only lately retired.