"Sophie's. Eli Cohen provided an incredible amount of intelligence data to the Israeli Army over a period of three years. Eli Cohen was born in Alexandria, Egypt, on December 26, 1924. The Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service, plans to name one of the buildings in its compound after Eli Cohen - its spy in Syria who was caught in Damascus, tried, convicted and executed 40 years ago. He died in 2009. At first, he refused. ", "Sacha Baron Cohen To Star As Eli Cohen in Netflix Limited Series 'The Spy', Cohen's widow asks for his remains to be returned, PM's speech at the ceremony marking 40 years since the death of Eli Cohen, Our man in Damascus: Eli Cohen of blessed memory, Exhibition in the IDF & Defense Establishment Archives, Eli Cohen, moments after the execution (part 1), Eli Cohen, moments after the execution (part 2), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eli_Cohen&oldid=1140124388, Egyptian people convicted of spying for Israel, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles having same image on Wikidata and Wikipedia, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 18 February 2023, at 15:41. There he met members of the Jewish Underground, handled by Unit 131 of Israel's Military Intelligence, which was exposed by the Egyptians in 1954. What Netflix's 'The Spy' Gets Wrong About Eli Cohen At the age of 41, Cohen was hanged in Damascus in front of a crowd of 10,000. Today, one can see the former Syrian bunkers that remain on the Golan Heights from 1967 (as well as the tanks from 1973). He is being executed according to the two articles 158 and 159 of the military penal code, and articles 271, 272, and 274 of the general penal code. Prime Minister Menachem Begin, Chief of Staff Mordechai Gur, Defense Minister Ezer Weizmann, and many Mossad officials attended Eli's son's bar mitzvah in 1977. He wasnt even drafted into regular service but was placed in a reserve Israeli Air Force formation as a logistics clerk. Perhaps he wasnt allowed into the security service due to his Military Intelligence evaluation some years before. Eli's wife Nadia, played by Hadar Ratzon Rotem, has to deal with raising two children without her husband, who disappears for up to a year at a time without being allowed to tell her what he's actually doing or even where he is. Al-Hafidh claims he was in negotiations with the Mossad to reveal the information, but wanted $1million for his services which the intelligence agency refused to pay. Over the years, her relationship with the Mossad and that of her children, Sophie Ben-Dor, Irit Peleg and Shai Cohen, unraveled. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. As Intelligence Chief Meir Amit said, Eli succeeded far beyond the capabilities of most other men.. His graduate report stated that he had all the qualities needed to become a katsa, or field agent. Eli Cohen | My Jewish Learning On January 24, 1965, Syrian intelligence broke into his home in the middle of a transmission. Israel could not survive without Jordan's water. (PMO), Sacha Baron Cohen as Israeli spy Eli Cohen in The Spy (YouTube screenshot), Mossad spy Eli Cohen, executed in Syria in 1965. It hurt. [8] His most famous achievement was the tour of the Golan Heights in which he collected intelligence on the Syrian fortifications there. Another tutor trained him to speak Arabic. [19] He also learned of a secret plan to create three successive lines of bunkers and mortars; the Israel Defense Forces would otherwise have expected to encounter only a single line. The goal was to gather intelligence from high-ranking Syrian politicians and military officials. He organized several protest campaigns against the British rule. Eli Cohen's daughter lukewarm on 'The Spy,' but likes Sacha Baron Cohen They were caught spying for Israel in 1953 and some of them were hanged. Eli was friends with two highly placed Army officers, Colonels Hatoum and Dali, who were fully informed about the scheme. He was driven to the airport, where his wife Nadia saw him off. He then left the university and continued his studies at home. Text messages sent from an NZSIS agent called "Carl" appear to show him brokering a deal. Cohen was born and raised in Egypt and was expelled to Israel in 1956. They married in 1959, a month after meeting, and had three children together. 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. Using Biton, Israel "fed" Egypt with false intelligence that reportedly contributed to the Six Day War victory. Spy Eli Cohen Wife Love Story, American History Has Been Whitewashed, But, Black Teen Girls On TV Are A Mess Finally. It also provides 30% of Israels water sources. On July 5, 2018, media channels announced that Elis wristwatch had been retrieved from Syria, which was later given back to Eli's family by 'Mossad' in a ceremony. She was told he would be completely safe, and she believed that until his capture in 1965. [8], Cohen was found guilty of espionage by a military tribunal and sentenced to death under martial law. 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. This coincided with the continuance of Palestinian terrorist infiltrators arriving from the Syrian border, along with a continual flow of Soviet technical assistance to Syria. 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. And much of the credit for Israels ability to capture the Golan was due to Eli Cohen, Israels greatest spy. Offended, he resigned from military counterintelligence and took up a clerical job in a Tel Aviv insurance office. In a February 2006 interview with Jewish Magazine, Maurice Cohen said that he informed his brother that he knew he was "our man in Damascus" in an intriguing way, rather than outright confronting him as seen in The Spy. Unfortunately, Nadia and her family are still waiting to get Elis body and have not made peace with it. In March 1963, General Hafez, Eli's friend was appointed minister of defense in salah Al-Birat's cabinet. Cohen's brothers Abraham and Maurice led a campaign to return his remains; Maurice died in 2006, and Nadia now leads it. Intelligence officers who investigated the issue offered two possibilities: The first is that it was Egyptian intelligence that identified Cohen and gave him up to the Syrians; the second, which is considered more probable, is that the demand for information was so great that frequent communications via radio to Mossad headquarters exposed Cohen to Syrian counterintelligence. 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. From 1961 to 1965, Eli transmitted crucial intelligence data, including that of the Golan Heights, to the Israeli army. HERZLIYA, Israel (Reuters) - A Netflix drama about Israeli spy Eli Cohen, who infiltrated the Syrian government in the 1960s and was later executed, has received a . They warned me not to discuss the issue with Eli anymore and to share his secret with no one.". Since 1992, the Golan has been up for discussion in the peace talks, but it strikes a very emotional chord among Israelis due to its historic and strategic significance, in addition to its natural beauty. For 19 years, Jewish settlements in the north were under constant threat of Syrian guns. In 1951, he was arrested and interrogated over his Jewish and Zionist activities that he was carrying out under the tutelage of Alexandria's chief rabbi. He had also participated in various Israeli furtive operations in the country during the 1950s. In the 1960s, Israel developed a national water carrier which diverted water from the Kinneret into a pipeline that irrigated much of the country and especially Israels arid south. Eli was brutally tortured and interrogated before he was publicly hanged on May 18, 1965, at the Marjeh Square in Damascus. She also said she understood and respected the show. Cohen established his contact quickly, his letter of recommendation opened the gates to high society. One day they took Eli to visit the Syrian positions along Israel's border. His new friends introduced Eli to top government officials, senior army officers, and leaders of the ruling party. His training was extensive and exhaustive. had succeeded in friending a Saudi entrepreneur who had been contracted to plan and dig canals, the name was his friend was bin Laden, little Osama's father. One day they took Eli to visit the Syrian positions along Israel's border. He was sentenced to death. He made friends with many of the guests and ended up receiving classified military briefings and visiting Syrian military sites. He was promised support in any venture he might wish to undertake, and the generous sums of cash which he appeared to possess appealed to the unscrupulous who thought he could provide grease to their financial ambitions, as well as patriotic Syrians who hoped for an infusion of foreign capital into the Syrian state. The saga of Eli Cohen, Israel's greatest spy - San Diego Jewish World Foreign Minister Eli Cohen heads to Germany Tuesday as part of Israel's campaign to halt Iran's . The Spy is streaming globally on Netflix. Eli Cohen (politician born 1972) - Wikipedia The location of Cohen's body remains unknown. "This cooperation brings significant benefits to New Zealand's national security, we help them (Mossad), and they help us," they added. Widow of Israeli spy Eli Cohen: 'When he was caught, something died Concentrate on yourself; look forward to a better future!I send you my last kisses to you and to the children: Sophie, Irit, and Shaoul, and to the rest of my family, especially my motherPlease pray for my soul. Eli Cohen, the spy who was larger than life - The Jerusalem Post Once Cohen had established his background, he was inserted into the "target country," Syria, and operated with great success for four years until his capture. On 29 December 2022, Cohen was sworn in as Foreign Minister alongside a new government, and will rotate the position with Israel Katz. His captors later remarked on his noble bearing and his courage despite the horrific Syrian interrogation methods. A year later, in 1965, Cohen was caught transmitting over the radio back to Tel Aviv. [12], He was then given a false identity as a Syrian businessman who was returning to the country after living in Argentina. Intelligence created a completely new identity for him. Meanwhile, every few days he transmitted important information to his Israeli handlers via a radio transmitter he had hidden in his room. Double Agent's Widow Offers New Take on Eli Cohen Affair In February 1962, Cohen moved to Damascus. He was taught high-speed evasive driving techniques, Weapons proficiency (especially with a wide variety of small arms), topography, map reading, sabotage, and, most importantly, radio transmissions and cryptography. These skills were instrumental in ensuring the safety and survival of one Kamal Amin Taabet: Eli Cohens new identity. "His parents, Syrian Jews from the thriving town of Aleppo, had always instilled in their educationally minded son the traditions of the Jewish people, of Zionism, and of the culture of Syria's Jewish community, in particular." they made great efforts to locate the secret transmission to Israel with help of Soviet-made equipment, in January 1965 they got success. Eli Cohen was now a member of the inner circle of power. They had three children, Sophie, Irit, and Shai. [2], A 2018 article published in Newsweek by Ronen Bergman excerpted from Bergman's book Rise and Kill First, says that Eli Cohen located Alois Brunner, a Nazi scientist suspected of living in Syria, and relayed the information to an Israel intelligence unit that later sent letter bombs to Brunner. No film or video was previously known to exist of the execution. After weeks of surveillance, he was finalized and was put to training. ", "Former Assad aide: Eli Cohen's burial site unknown],mm", "New footage emerges of Eli Cohen on the gallows", "Mossad Brings Home Watch of Israeli Spy Executed in Syria; Netanyahu Hails 'Brave' Op", "Watch of famed Israeli spy Eli Cohen recovered by Mossad", "The saga of Eli Cohen, Israel's greatest spy", "Will Assad's Ouster Free Body of Israel Spy? [4] His father had moved there from Aleppo in 1914. Syria has not even disclosed the location of Eli's grave. "You know, when I was growing up, I heard a tremendous amount about your husband. [7][9], Israel staged an international campaign for clemency, hoping to persuade the Syrians not to execute him. They further said that the use of the term "partner" is generic and is applied to all those agencies with which we have contact. The purposes of that visit were to pass on intelligence and to enable him to witness the birth of his third child. For the next two years, he worked as a filing clerk in a Tel Aviv insurance office. They had a son, Daniel, and after the Six Day War they celebrated his bar mitzvah at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. Eli was, however, taken in by 'Mossad' when Director-General Meir Amit was in search of a special agent to infiltrate the Syrian government. Ben-Dor was pessimistic that Israel would soon be able to retrieve her fathers body from Syria. A New Zealander claiming to the son of a former Syrian president, says he knows the whereabouts of the executed Israeli spy's remains, according to a report on New Zealand news service Newshub on Sunday. Cohen's training was long and exhausting. For as little as $6/month, you will: Were really pleased that youve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month. Sacha Baron Cohen in 'The Spy' as Eli Cohen. The 2019 'Netflix' miniseries 'The Spy' had actor Sacha Baron Cohen portraying Eli. He had an input into and an impact on Syrian national defense and was privy to almost all their secrets. [12][20][21] Cohen was able to find out that the Syrians planned to divert the Jordan River headwaters in an attempt to deprive Israel of water resources, providing information to Israeli forces that enabled them to destroy the equipment prepared for the task. I am writing you these last words, minutes before my end, with the hope that you stay together forever. After his execution, a white parchment filled with anti-Zionist writing was put on his body, and he was left hanging for six hours. "- From Eli Cohen's last letter to his wife Nadia and his children, written an hour before his execution in Damascus. Recruitment into the Mossad. At these parties, Cohen "dispensed free-flowing liquor and prostitutes",[1] and highly placed officials would openly discuss their work and army plans. Israel tried to obtain the cooperation of her Arab neighbors for the plan, but the Arabs would not agree, even when the United States tried to use its diplomatic leverage for the furtherance of the plan. In 1967, the Israelis were able to conquer the Golan Heights in two days in part due to the intelligence he provided. Despite this, however, Israeli intelligence asked him to return to Syria one more time. I beg my wife to forgive me, to take care of herself and our children. The alleged son says the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS) contacted him two years ago believing he has clues to the secret location, which his father had apparently taken to the grave. "I was cooperating with the New Zealand Secret Intelligence Service, in cooperation with the Mossad, in order to help find the remains of the Israeli spy Eli Cohen," he said. Saif calmly replied, Theres nothing to worry about. In 1949, his parents and three brothers moved to Israel while Eli remained in Egypt to coordinate Jewish and Zionist activities there. The drunk guests would often end up blabbing about their work to Cohen, who was sober but would pretend to be intoxicated. In February 2007, the Turkish government offered to act as a mediator for their return. A memorial stone has been erected in the 'Garden of the Missing Soldiers' in Mount Herzl, Jerusalem, to commemorate him. The complete trust Cohen enjoyed among his unwitting informants is illustrated by the following incident, which might have serious consequences for the Israeli agents. Its unfamiliar to me, this form of expression in a global television series. If indeed Biton was a double agent - and Israeli intelligence prides itself on the quality of his work - then it is difficult to believe that he exposed Cohen. On 18 May 1965, Eli cohen was woken by the jailer and fastened the noose, and hang up, the huge poster was fastened on his chest where his sentence was written in Arabic.Even today Syria refuses to return his body for burial in Israel. Despite her criticism of the series, Ben-Dor said she understood why the shows creators took artistic license with her fathers story. You're not alone. Did you spend your weekend binge-watching Netflix's taut thriller, The Spy? Thats when he met Nadia Majald, an Iraqi-born Jewish woman who lived near his brother and his wife. The watch is now on display at the 'Mossad' headquarters. Fifty-Five Years without Eli Cohen | Tuvia Book | The Blogs Eli Cohen was first sent to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to establish his cover as a Syrian emigre. Learn more. 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. Eli's handlers were continually persuading him to return. He is best known for his espionage work in 196165 in Syria, where he developed close relationships with the Syrian political and military hierarchy.[1][2][3]. love of country, sacrifice and about his life and my life, my children." . He was caught and sentenced to death. become close friends. In 1954, the British pull out of Egypt completely. He became far less careful in his transmissions to Israel, sometimes calling once or even twice a day and almost always at the same time, at 8:30 in the morning. In the final episode of The Spy, Cohen's brother Maurice, a Mossad analyst, confronts him after discovering he is the secret Agent 88 in Damascus. He also held parties at his home for high-placed Syrian ministers, businessmen, and others. It is for these reasons Eli Cohen is known as Israels greatest spy. [9], Cohen continued his social life as he had in Argentina, spending time in cafes listening to political gossip. Cohen heads to Germany to discuss Iran uranium enrichment, IRGC Cohen immigrated to Israel in 1957 and was recruited by Military Intelligence, to a unit that later became part of the Mossad. Cohen wasnt allowed tell anyone of the plans and told his wife that he was working abroad for Israels Defense Ministry. The melting winter snows produce a huge run-off of water which makes the Golan a beautifully verdant area in the late winter and spring and irrigates the Hula and Jordan Valleys below. Scheffeldt said that her husband never revealed his true identity, and she learned of it only after a television series aired in Egypt that described him as a national hero. Khalid al-Hafidh, a Syrian migrant living in Auckland, claims to be the son Amin al-Hafiz, a Syrian leader who presided over the country during Cohen's execution and his subsequent secret burial. One day Cohen was sitting in Saifs office reading a classified document while the Syrian was on the phone. Please use the following structure: example@domain.com, Send me The Times of Israel Daily Edition. Nadia, understandably, has remained fixated on her loss. "We have six grandchildren," she says with pride as she points to a family photo on the wall. From the creation of Israel through, the present day, Syria has been one, if not the most, implacable of Israels enemies. He ultimately complied. In January 1965, Syrian security officers broke into Elis apartment while he was in the middle of his escape to Israel. Warning: This post contains spoilers for The Spy. They observed a period of radio silence, in the hope that any illegal transmissions could be identified. Show creator Gideon Raff's limited series has brought renewed attention to the life and work of Eli Cohen. 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. I beg you my dear Nadia do not spend your life weeping for what has passed. By 1960, however, Israeli Intelligence was ready to take another look at Eli Cohen. Nadia Cohen Biography - Facts, Childhood, Family Life, Achievements Eli studied at a local Jewish community school and then attended the 'University of Alexandria' to study electrical engineering. He became a confidante of George Saif, high up in the Ministry of Information. [13][14] In Buenos Aires he moved among the Arab community, letting it be known he had large amounts of money to put at the disposal of the Syrian Ba'ath Party. Spouse/Ex-: Eli Cohen (m. 1959-1965) children: Irit Cohen, Shai Cohen, Sophie Cohen Born Country: Iraq Family Members Iraqi Female Life with Eli Nadia (born Nadia Majald) is an Iraqi Jew who got married to Eli on August 31, 1959. Eli Cohen's daughter Sofia Ben-Dor was excited about it because that is all they have. 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 Cohenalso learned to identify the type and age of tanks, aircraft, and cannons. 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. I understand and respect [it], she said in a separate interview earlier Sunday with the network. [5] He studied at Cairo Farouk University. But he spent most of his time in Tel Aviv perfecting his cover and being briefed on Amans requirements of him in Syria, as well as last-minute intelligence data needed for his mission. His success in effectively penetrating the Syrian social and political/diplomatic/military strata already wildly exceeded Amans expectations of him, Cohen arrived in Damascus in February 1962, posing as a businessman from Argentina who had returned to his native land. What Could Possibly Go Wrong? In 1963, new Ramdas replaced Meir Amit for a few months in charge of both a man and Mossad. Prior to the 1952 Egyptian Revolution, Cohen was arrested and interrogated over his Zionist activities. In early 1961, Chaim Herzog, Chief of Military Intelligence and later president of Israel, signed the document authorizing Cohens use as a spy. The Spy's Widow // After many decades, Nadia Cohen is keeping the Where Is Nadia Cohen Now? Spy Eli Cohen Wife Love Story - Refinery29 The text messages between Khalid and the NZSIS. For a while, Cohen tried his hand at civilian life. For two weeks Cohen was put under surveillance and was judged suitable for recruitment and training. The leading figure in the break-in was the head of Syrian Intelligence, Colonel Ahmed Suedani Elis nemesis. [7], Following state-sponsored anti-Semitic attacks on its Jewish communities, many of them fled or were expelled, and Cohen was forced to leave the country in December 1956. According to Scheffeldt, al-Gamal wrote in his memoirs of his friendship with Marcelle Ninio, who was sentenced to four years in prison for her role in the Jewish Underground, and also about Eli Cohen. In the short periods he came home he wanted to absorb all the love from his children, he even smelt their scent to stay with him, and he wanted to give all the love possible, like a father to his children. Cohens contacts, nurtured through a string of lavish dinner parties, social occasions, and friendships with those in high places, led to invitations to visit Damascus and to set up a business venture there. I am begging you my dear Nadia not to spend your time in weeping about some thing already passed. Various reports say that Biton was unveiled and offered the option of becoming a double agent. He was tortured, but he wouldnt give away any incriminating information about Israel. Thanks". He arrived in Israel on February 8, 1957. Earlier communication between the alleged son and the intelligence agency reveals Al-Hafidh was adamant on receiving the money. Melita Norwood | longest-serving British spy | Melita Norwood Book, Death, Family, Daughter | melita norwood images. World leaders, wealthy individuals, the Israeli government, the pope, and others all intervened on his behalf. Since Eli did not have a steady job back then, even though he worked as an accountant, he had to rely more on Nadia to help support the family and their marriage. Eli could watch the entrance to the Syrian government officials' guest house. Eli expressed his fear and wish to terminate his assignment in Syria during his last visit to Israel in November 1964. Israel's minister of defense Pinhas Lavon and colonel Benyamin Gibli head of military intelligence, concocted a dangerous and foolish plan if several terrorist bombings were swept Egypt, the British will return to its former bases and concluded that Egypt's couldn't maintain law and order. It, however, did not change the situation. We may recall the Egyptian-Jewish spies from the Operation Susannah fiasco. Eli has been honored as an Israeli national hero, and many streets and neighborhoods have been named after him. Cohen was arrested in January 1965 while transmitting to his handlers. Cohen went undercover in Syria as Kamel Amin Thaabet in the early 1960s, aligned himself with key military and government personnel and fed intel back to Israel. Last year, Israel was able to retrieve Cohens wristwatch from Syria and return it to his family. Daniel Sonnenfeld,55 years after execution in Syria, Israeli spy Eli Cohen makes headlines,Jerusalem Post, February 27, 2021). Israel has for decades worked to retrieve his remains. All these years, I remained faithful to him. His widow mentioned that the watch was up for sale months earlier, and Mossad managed to capture it. He was a legend," I declare. References ^ Eli Cohen Knesset ^ Eli Cohen Ministry of Economy and Industry ^ Kulanu list Central Elections Committee If I wanted something, I called, they put me through to him immediately. After three months, Eli spoke passable Spanish, knew Buenos Aires well, dressed, and behaved like thousands of Arab immigrants living in Buenos Aires. I want him (Yossi Cohen) to clarify what hapepned," said the 84-year-old. A month later, a Syrian officer would say that one of Israel's attack architects had been Eli Cohen, who was in Israel during the battle. He reminded me of my father sometimes, she added. At the same time, Israeli officials devised escape schemes and appealed to international organizations. While undercover in Argentina in The Spy, Cohen struggles to resist drafting her notes, even if it puts him in danger.