His work bored him and he attempted to join the Mossad, but he was offended when the Mossad rejected him, and he resigned from military counter-intelligence. The newly appointed Syrian intelligence colonel, Ahmed Su'edani, disliked Eli. The Syrian project to divert water from the headwaters of the Jordan away from Israel was mentioned already in the above introduction. [7], In January 1965, Syrian officials, who used Soviet-made tracking equipment and were assisted by Soviet experts, increased their efforts to find a high-level spy. Later, visiting his sister-in-law, Cohen's wife Nadia, he notices that she has a brand new Singer sewing machine in her home. While undercover in Argentina in The Spy, Cohen struggles to resist drafting her notes, even if it puts him in danger. He worked as an accountant and translator. Eli Cohen (pictured, at center) was born in Egypt in 1924 to Jewish parents who had immigrated to Alexandria from Aleppo, Syria. Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion, Antoni Porowski Talks New Cookbook, Recipes and Tradition in Cooking, Netflix's 'The Spy': Eli Cohen's Remains Still a Mystery, How to Watch True Crime Series 'Unbelievable' on Netflix. He would entertain high-ranking politicians and military officials at extravagant parties where there would be many women and lots of booze. He also held parties at his home for high-placed Syrian ministers, businessmen, and others. Cohen accepted the calling. Eli has been honored as an Israeli national hero, and many streets and neighborhoods have been named after him. He reminded me of my father sometimes, she added. They warned me not to discuss the issue with Eli anymore and to share his secret with no one.". We may recall the Egyptian-Jewish spies from the Operation Susannah fiasco. He took on the name Kamel Amin Thaabet and went to live in Argentina for some time to build a name for himself in the Syrian expat community. Eli could watch the entrance to the Syrian government officials' guest house. "The moment that they informed me [of the watch's recovery] my mouth went dry and I got the chills," Nadia told Israeli TV. Please try again or choose an option below. The commenter agrees to the privacy policy of Ynet News and agrees not to submit comments that violate the. They even started to organize a ceremony for Eli at the 'Mossad' headquarters in Glilot. Nadia believed it and went to see him off at the airport in 1961. Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen (Hebrew: , Arabic: ; 6 December 1924 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israeli spy. Do what you must, don't deprive the children of a father. In January 1947, he was enlisted in the Egyptian army as an alternative to paying the mandatory sum that all young Jews had to pay. After a few months, Eli was visited by George Salem Seif, a radio show host in charge of radio Damascus broadcast for Syrian abord. As Intelligence Chief Meir Amit said, Eli succeeded far beyond the capabilities of most other men.. The film featured John Shea as Eli. It is for these reasons Eli Cohen is known as Israels greatest spy. Syrian counterintelligence eventually uncovered the spy conspiracy and convicted Cohen under pre-war martial law, sentencing him to death and hanging him publicly in 1965. Asked to pinpoint what she found not to be reflective of her familys experience, Ben-Dor cited the ethnic gap, noting her mother was never a maid as was portrayed in the series. On the day of his execution, his last wish to see a rabbi was respected by the prison authorities, and Nissim Indibo, the elderly Chief Rabbi of Syria, accompanied him in the truck. The president was ousted from power a year later in 1966. She also said she understood and respected the show. With time he was taken even more into the confidence of the highest echelons of power. Eli had lost his friends, in 1957 he immigrates to Israel. In The Spy, based on the true story of Israeli agent Eli Cohen, comic actor Sacha Baron Cohen takes on a serious role, playing the title character. He set up a travel agency in Tel Aviv and developed ties with the upper echelons of Israeli society, including politicians. It says this "does not imply any special relationship or endorsement". "Their ages range from four and a half to 32." "You must be very proud," I offer. The goal was to gather intelligence from high-ranking Syrian politicians and military officials. They further said that the use of the term "partner" is generic and is applied to all those agencies with which we have contact. From 1948 until 1967, Syria firing mortar shells from the Syrian occupied Golan Heights into the Jewish settlements of the Upper Galilee below. when you were three, your family left Lebanon and moved to Egypt Alexandria. But as with all fictional works that derive from real-life events, The Spy, perhaps for reasons ranging from time constraints to story relevance, omits some points in Cohen's story. "You know, when I was growing up, I heard a tremendous amount about your husband. Why Mossad's Retrieval of Eli Cohen's Watch Matters - SOFREP Nevertheless, Kamal Amin Taabet (Eli Cohen) succeeded in visiting every position. Thats when he met Nadia Majald, an Iraqi-born Jewish woman who lived near his brother and his wife. His widow mentioned that the watch was up for sale months earlier, and Mossad managed to capture it. Earlier communication between the alleged son and the intelligence agency reveals Al-Hafidh was adamant on receiving the money. In December 1956, the Jewish Agency assisted Eli to deport to Israel in a vessel. He was quickly able to infiltrate the highest levels of Syrian society. They had a son, Daniel, and after the Six Day War they celebrated his bar mitzvah at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. In February 1961 one man handed him an Israeli passport in his real name and a plane ticket to Zurich.on his arrival, Eli was met by a white-haired man who gave him a passport from another name, that passport carried an entry visa to chile and a transit visa to Argentina. The Spy's Widow // After many decades, Nadia Cohen is keeping the He was a legend," I declare. Eli found out about Syria's secret plan to attack the Israeli defense forces. It went wrong, really wrong," he said. One of the ministrys directors entered the room unannounced. Nadia still holds a grudge against the 'Mossad' handlers who had sent Eli to Syria, an action that had taken him away from her, forever. Before leaving, Cohen assured his wife it would be his last trip before he returned home permanently. Eli Cohen Biography - Facts, Childhood, Family Life & Achievements Following Israel's independence in 1949, when Jewish families were leaving Egypt, Eli stayed back to finish his electronics degree. Cohen would then send intelligence back to Israel using a hidden radio transmitter. In early 1964, Eli was able to radio Tel Aviv that the channel was being dug along the entire length of the Syrian Heights to receive the diverted flow of the Baniyas River - one of the Jordans major sources - and empty into Jordanian territory. Eli carefully spelled out all the details of the project and passed them on to Israeli Intelligence. In 1960, Cohen was approached by the Mossad for a mission in Syria. I think as long as Bashar Assad is in power I dont see the word progress,' she said, referring to Syrias dictator. Al-Hafidh then sent his bank details, but the deal went cold. She had no idea about Elis secret mission and thus did not see the threats and risks involved. Syrian security services led by Suidani broke into Cohen's apartment on 24 January and caught him in the middle of a transmission to Israel. The crime of obtaining secret information is kept hidden to ensure the safety of the country to benefit the enemy. They had three children, Sophie, Irit, and Shai. Due to this information, the Israeli Air Force was able to obliterate the Syrian plans for the diversion scheme by shelling and bombing the bulldozers and other equipment used for the scheme in early 1964. Despite this, however, Israeli intelligence asked him to return to Syria one more time. Altogether, he returned to Israel three times between 1962 and 1965. he soon became a well-known figure in the Arab circle. The execution was recorded on 35mm film. Eli Cohen was the man for the job. Over the years, Nadia has made several efforts to seek a bit of mercy from Syrian officials. [8], Israel's secret police recruited a sabotage unit of Jewish Egyptian citizens in 1955 which attempted to undermine Egypt's relationships with western powers in the "Lavon Affair". [9] The governments of Belgium, Canada, and France tried to persuade the Syrian government to commute the death sentence,[25] but the Syrians refused. Prime Minister Menachem Begin, Defense Minister Ezer Weizmann, Chief of Staff Mordechai Gur, and several Mossad operatives all attended his son's Bar Mitzvah in 1977. But he refused). Eli did go back to Syria, but his behavior changed. Eli was friends with two highly placed Army officers, Colonels Hatoum and Dali, who were fully informed about the scheme. Cohen was then informed that Mossad had decided to recruit him and underwent an intensive six-month course at the Mossad training school. The drunk guests would often end up blabbing about their work to Cohen, who was sober but would pretend to be intoxicated. The text messages between Khalid and the NZSIS. Instead, he joined the Egyptian merchant marine and was involved in a number of scams, which resulted in his arrest by the Egyptian secret service in 1952. The next day he comes to Hassan's office and admitted that he is sick and tired to live in Argentina, he wanted to go back to Syria, could he help him with a letter of recommendation? Thus, he wished to terminate his assignment in Syria. Thats why we started the Times of Israel ten years ago - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world. This version contradicts that of Israel's secret service. the plan was doomed from staring, one of the bombs exploded in the pocket of Philip Natanson and was arrested by police and other members were caught in the following days. Eli Cohen's daughter lukewarm on 'The Spy,' but likes Sacha Baron Cohen I don't want to go to my death longing for my Eli to rest in the soil of the land that he loved and for which he gave his life. try to make as many friends as possible, and establish contact with Arab leaders. Diplomats, prime ministers, parliamentarians, and Pope Paul VI tried to intercede. However, Eli's loyalty was scrutinized, and he faced harassment by the 'Muslim Brotherhood.' His wife, Nadia, would be left a widow with three very young children. In the fifties, Israel had launched a project of huge pipeline and canals that would carry a part of the jorden river water to the arid Negev region. Others have attributed the carelessness to an almost suicidal tendency perhaps, it was later surmised, he had been in the undercover world too long, but knew he couldnt get out of it. In 1949, his parents and three brothers moved to Israel while Eli remained in Egypt to coordinate Jewish and Zionist activities there. they made great efforts to locate the secret transmission to Israel with help of Soviet-made equipment, in January 1965 they got success. Its waters flow into the Sea of Galilee (the Kinneret) and south to the Dead Sea. The watch is now on display at the 'Mossad' headquarters. He made friends with many of the guests and ended up receiving classified military briefings and visiting Syrian military sites. The TV film 'The Impossible Spy' (1987) chronicled Eli's life. Last Friday marked the 53rd anniversary of the execution of Eli Cohen, the Egyptian-born Israeli spy who burrowed his way so deep into the Syrian state apparatus he nearly came to head it. [8] His most famous achievement was the tour of the Golan Heights in which he collected intelligence on the Syrian fortifications there. Cohen wasnt allowed tell anyone of the plans and told his wife that he was working abroad for Israels Defense Ministry. Eli Cohen was an Egyptian-born Israeli spy best known for his espionage work in the 1960s in Syria, where it was alleged he developed close relationships with the Syrian political and military. The Story of Eli Cohen, the Israeli Superspy Who Almost Became Syria's He soon established himself in the social and cultural life of the Syrian community of Buenos Aires and was known as a wealthy businessman who was generous, tipped well, and loved the night life. Text messages sent from an NZSIS agent called "Carl" appear to show him brokering a deal. The Israel Defense Forces were alleged to have used the trees as targeting markers during the Six-Day War, which enabled Israel to capture the Golan Heights in two days.
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