In 1963, during a business trip to Germany, he met Weltrude Scheffeldt, a divorcee, then 22 and with a small child, and married her. Once registered, youll receive our Daily Edition email for free. Elis larger-than-life persona has attracted many filmmakers, who have then used his story for their projects. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and the Israeli ambassador, Itzhak Gerberg, would not comment on the report. "Concentrate on yourself; look forward to a better future!". The Golan is not only important for its military significance. He then underwent a show trial, like the Operation Susannah spies had in Egypt 12 years before., Like them, his verdict was predetermined. also learned to identify the type and age of tanks, aircraft, and cannons. Still, Israeli Intelligence asked him to return to Syria one more time. His last wish was to see a rabbi. Hence, Nissim Andabo, the elderly chief rabbi of Syria accompanied him to Marjeh Square.. Eli has been honored as an Israeli national hero, and many streets and neighborhoods have been named after him. When the Golan was captured in 1967, at almost the end of the Six-Day War, settlers in the north could finally feel relieved. Eli Cohen was born in Alexandria, Egypt, on December 26, 1924. He was supposed to stay in Buenos Aires as a Syrian migr businessman named Kamal Amin Taabet. Haaretz.com, the online English edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, gives you breaking news, analyses and opinions about Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World. Cohen later. Nadia Majald, and together they had three children. Since then, Nadia has always counted on him. "This cooperation brings significant benefits to New Zealand's national security, we help them (Mossad), and they help us," they added. Egypt has the strongest of the Arab countries and sworn enamy if Israel with the decision to evacuate Egypt, modern bases, airfield, and huge stores of equipment and war material would fall into the Egyptian army. As depicted in Episodes 4 and 5 of The Spy, Cohen aligns with Hafiz and the Ba'ath political party to overthrow the reigning government of Syria in March 1963. No film or video was previously known to exist of the execution. Revealed: The Plan to Expand the Israeli Knesset by More Than Double, Haaretz Daily Newspaper Ltd. All Rights Reserved. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community. I beg you my dear Nadia do not spend your life weeping for what has passed. [4] His father had moved there from Aleppo in 1914. The message was passed on to the Syrians, who arrested Cohen. Nadia Cohen attempted to appeal for clemency at the Syrian Embassy in Paris but was turned away. One day Cohen was sitting in Saifs office reading a classified document while the Syrian was on the phone. Learn more. Again, I. He even trained at the same facility that had served as home to his doomed Susannah compatriots in 1953. He returned to Egypt in 1956 but was suspected immediately and was placed under surveillance. In December 1956, the Jewish Agency assisted Eli to deport to Israel in a vessel. Al-Gamal was born in 1927 and aspired to become an actor. But the intelligence officers convinced him to go back one last time. The border with Syria was heating up as well. Eli Cohen was born in Egypt in 1924 to Jewish parents, who had migrated to Alexandria from Syria. After several days, Eli got a new identity as. Nadia, however, never remarried. While undercover in Argentina in The Spy, Cohen struggles to resist drafting her notes, even if it puts him in danger. The leading figure in the break-in was the head of Syrian Intelligence, Colonel Ahmed Suedani Elis nemesis. According to his fictional biography, in 1948 the family moved to Argentina, where they opened a successful textile business. Kamal Amin Taabets (Eli Cohen) return to Syria would ostensibly be the fulfillment of a lifelong patriotic dream. I give you my blessing. Eli Cohen Wife, Children | Israeli Spy biography | Last Letter to his At the age of 41, Cohen was hanged in Damascus in front of a crowd of 10,000. But he refused). Eli Cohen was first sent to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to establish his cover as a Syrian emigre. children: Irit Cohen, Shai Cohen, Sophie Cohen Born Country: Egypt Spies Israeli Men Died on: May 18, 1965 place of death: Al Marjeh Square, Damascus, Syria Notable Alumni: Cairo Farouk University Cause of Death: Executed By Hanging City: Alexandria, Egypt More Facts Recommended Lists: Israeli Celebrities Male Spies Israeli Spies Capricorn Men Kamal Amin Taabet (also called Tabas in some sources) was born in Beirut, Lebanon, to Syrian Muslim parents. Unfortunately, Nadia and her family are still waiting to get Elis body and have not made peace with it. From 1961 to 1965, Eli transmitted crucial intelligence data, including that of the Golan Heights, to the Israeli army. "- From Eli Cohen's last letter to his wife Nadia and his children, written an hour before his execution in Damascus. [16][17] Mossad had carefully planned the tactics that he was to use in building relationships with high-ranking Syrian politicians, military officials, influential public figures, and the diplomatic community. Eli Cohen (politician born 1972) - Wikipedia [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. Steve Cohen's daughter Sophia splits from fianc - Page Six [34], The Israeli settlement Eliad on the Golan Heights is named for him.[35]. The actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen has a . Eli visited other Arab friends as Abdel Latif Hassan and his briefcase was full of enthusiastic letters of recommendation. 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. [32], John Shea played Cohen in the television film The Impossible Spy (1987),[33] and Sacha Baron Cohen played him in the Netflix miniseries The Spy (2019). "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. The daughter of legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen said Sunday "it hurt" to watch the new Netflix series about her father's life and execution in Syria, lamenting some historical inaccuracies in. In 1960, he was recruited to join the Mossad for a special mission in which he was to pretend to be a Syrian businessman returning to the country after having lived in Argentina. Eli had to conceal the microfilm inexpensive boxes containing backgammon pieces .the music ornament could be dug out of the polished wood and reinserted after microfilm had been placed in the cavity. He has reached the apex of success, and it seems that there is no door he can't open. Eli Cohen's son, Shaul, was only 2 weeks old when he last saw his father. Al-Hafidh wanted a million dollars for his services, texting: "1M for the minimum for kick start. In November 1965, Eli's wife wrote to Syrian leader Hafez al-Assad, requesting him to send Elis remains back to Israel. Sacha Baron Cohen-led limited series "The Spy" which comes out today on Netflix tells the true story of how famed Israeli Mossad agent Eli Cohen went undercover in 1960s Syria. But within a month he had lost his Tel Aviv-based accountancy job. Cohen wrote in his final letter on 15 May 1965:[7]. In 1965, the Syrian secret service was on high alert. Monthir Maosily, a former bureau chief for Syrian president Hafez al-Assad, claimed in 2007 that Hafiz and Cohen were not as close as was made out and that stories of Cohen infiltrating the very top of Syrian politics "had been exaggerated to undermine Syria, as if he was a spy who had transmitted Syria's deepest secrets.". They had three childrenSophie, Irit, and Shaiand the family settled in Bat Yam. In 'The Spy,' Sacha Baron Cohen Gets Serious : NPR Eli married Iraqi Jewish Nadia Majald, sister of Hebrew author Sami Michael, in 1959. Recalling Elis final days, Nadia states he was in Bat Yam, with her and the three babies. He worked as an accountant and translator. She had no idea about Elis secret mission and thus did not see the threats and risks involved. Its unfamiliar to me, this form of expression in a global television series. [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. he soon became a well-known figure in the Arab circle. Eli's handlers were continually persuading him to return. 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. 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 reminded me of my father sometimes, she added. "It works with a range of international intelligence agencies,'' the NZSIS said in response. He made friends who moved in highly influential Syrian circles, transmitting his findings back to Israel via radio. "My darling Nadia, and my dear family,I am writing you these last words, minutes before my end, with the hope that you stay together forever.I beg my wife to forgive me, to take care of herself and our children. At the same time, Israeli officials devised escape schemes and appealed to international organizations. 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. 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. In 1962 Eli cohen was in Damascus with crowded mosques and colorful souks, he rented a luxurious villa in the classy Abu Ramen neighborhood, close to the Syrian embassy. love of country, sacrifice and about his life and my life, my children." . click the link in that email to complete your registration. [8], Cohen was found guilty of espionage by a military tribunal and sentenced to death under martial law. With time he was taken even more into the confidence of the highest echelons of power. 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. Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel, 2023 The Times of Israel , All Rights Reserved, Sophie Ben-Dor (Screen capture: Channel 12 News), This undated photo shows Israeli spy Eli Cohen in Syria wearing a wristwatch recovered by the Mossad in 2018. It takes just a few seconds. Later, visiting his sister-in-law, Cohen's wife Nadia, he notices that she has a brand new Singer sewing machine in her home. For four years, Cohen posed as a Syrian textile businessman named Kamal Amin Thabet, first in Argentina and later in Damascus. According to Scheffeldt, Cohen and al-Gamal were arrested together in 1954 and released shortly after. Another tutor trained him to speak Arabic. Israeli spy's widow 'hurt' by Netflix biopic, but welcomes publicity [31] A memorial stone has been erected to Cohen in the Garden of the Missing Soldiers in Mount Herzl, Jerusalem. They married in 1959, a month after meeting, and had three children together. He lasted until just July that year when he resigned in protest of the Ba'ath military committee executing dissenting rivals who tried to stage a coup for power. The commenter agrees to the privacy policy of Ynet News and agrees not to submit comments that violate the. She understood from him that he would be working for the Ministry of Defense, but she didnt know where or in what capacity. His remains have yet to be returned, despite pleas from his family. His successes couldn't be vocally shared with his family, however. The Kinneret supplies Israel with most of its water needs. Syria tortures him but he was still lying, his face was covered with wounds, his nail was pulled out. [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. He was convicted in a trial without a defense and sentenced to death. He then left the university and continued his studies at home. Over the years, her relationship with the Mossad and that of her children, Sophie Ben-Dor, Irit Peleg and Shai Cohen, unraveled. This week, KAN 11 began broadcasting a documentary series "Lochem 566," (Fighter 566, Cohen's Mossad codename). And much of the credit for Israels ability to capture the Golan was due to Eli Cohen, Israels greatest spy. 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. While there are reports that Cohen hosted parties that would devolve into orgies at his apartment, in order to gain the trust of high-level people in power, there's no concrete evidence that he played a role in the March 1963 coup.
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