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. If so, please join The Times of Israel Community. Eli's first instructor Yitzhak learned to memorize things, he throws a dozen objects on the table and Eli observe them for a second and described them. Click the link in that email to complete registration so you can comment. Eli Cohenbecame certain that Israel had spied in the Syrian government. While there, he gained the trust of Amin al-Hafez, who would later become Syrias president. He then moved to Damascus in February 1962, under his new identity, Kamel Amin Thaabet, to extract classified information from Syrian military officers. 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. Eli did go back to Syria, but his behavior changed. Eli Cohenhad 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. Al-Gamal rushed to inform his superiors that Thabet was none other than Eli Cohen, the Alexandrian Jew. A year later your sister dies.in 1947 all of you arrived in Argentina. He did not object, in fact, to the idea of a ladies man reputation. "- From Eli Cohen's last letter to his wife Nadia and his children, written an hour before his execution in Damascus. His widow mentioned that the watch was up for sale months earlier, and Mossad managed to capture it. Eli seemed to have completed the final stage in establishing his network. Recalling Elis final days, Nadia states he was in Bat Yam, with her and the three babies. Eli married Iraqi Jewish Nadia Majald, sister of Hebrew author Sami Michael, in 1959. The purposes of that visit were to pass on intelligence and to enable him to witness the birth of his third child. The Golan is not only important for its military significance. But in 1965, he was unmasked. After a few months, Eli was visited by George Salem Seif, a radio show host in charge of radio Damascus broadcast for Syrian abord. Cohen had aided the unit and was implicated, but they found no link between him and the perpetrators. In real life, the closeness between Hafiz and Cohen has been disputed by the former president of Syria, who claimed in a 2001 interview with Al Jazeera that they couldn't have met in Buenos Aires because Hafiz was in Moscow until 1962, by which time Cohen had gone undercover as Thaabet in Damascus. "This cooperation brings significant benefits to New Zealand's national security, we help them (Mossad), and they help us," they added. "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. He would entertain high-ranking politicians and military officials at extravagant parties where there would be many women and lots of booze. The location of Cohen's body remains unknown. Did you spend your weekend binge-watching Netflix's taut thriller, The Spy? Their youngest child, Shai, was only 21 days old then. Despite being away from home for months at a time, he fathered three children, Sophie, Irit and Shai. At the age of 41, Cohen was hanged in Damascus in front of a crowd of 10,000. He remembered and passed on to Israeli Intelligence the positioning of every Syrian gun, trench, and machine-gun nest in each Golan Heights fortification; tank traps, designed to impede any Israeli attack, were also identified and memorized for future targeting.. One day they took Eli to visit the Syrian positions along Israel's border. I think as long as Bashar Assad is in power I dont see the word progress,' she said, referring to Syrias dictator. But he refused). One of them was Colonel Amin al-Hafaz, a supporter of the secular-leftist Baath party. He emigrated to Israel with the assistance of the Jewish Agency. Earlier communication between the alleged son and the intelligence agency reveals Al-Hafidh was adamant on receiving the money. "I beg you my dear Nadia do not spend your life weeping for what has past," his final letter read. [29] Mossad director Yossi Cohen presented it to Cohen's family in a ceremony, and it is currently on display at Mossad headquarters. By Lianne Back. Concentrate on yourself; look forward to a better future! In 1960, Cohen was recruited to be part of a dangerous mission to Syria. This version contradicts that of Israel's secret service. It went wrong, really wrong," he said. Syria brought hydraulic engineers and diversion equipment to actualize the scheme. This helped the army win the Six-Day War and capture the Golan Heights. The Golan Heights defenses were top-secret and closed only to top military staff. 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. For more than 50 years, Nadia has fought to have her husbands body returned to Israel. Nadia, widow of Israeli spy Eli Cohen, reacts during an interview with Reuters in Herzliya, Israel October 6, 2019. . 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. 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. Elis connections enabled him to be taken to the Golan Heights a major strategic asset for Syria from 1948-67. His family is now settled in Bat Yam. Concentrate on yourself, looking forward for a better future! In February 1962, Cohen moved to Damascus. At times before the civil war, the Syrians used Israels northern border with Lebanon to harass Israel the way they used to from the Golan Heights. For as little as $6/month, you will: Were really pleased that youve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month. Thats when he met Nadia Majald, an Iraqi-born Jewish woman who lived near his brother and his wife. 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. The film featured John Shea as Eli. In August 2008, Assad's former bureau chief, Monthir Maosily, revealed that Eli had been buried thrice and that Israel would never receive his body. Israel attacked the project serval time later they abandon the project in 1965. At first, he refused. The agency concluded that Cohen had a high IQ, great bravery, a phenomenal memory, and the ability to keep a secret; but the tests also showed that in spite of his modest appearance, he has an exaggerated sense of self-importance, and a lot of internal tension. Cohen, the results indicated, does not always evaluate danger correctly, and is liable to assume risks beyond those which are necessary.. In January 1965, Syrian security services broke into Eli's apartment, where he was caught while he was escaping to Israel. He was a legend," I declare. The Baath party was rising to power and Eli Cohen wanted to be there when it took power. During their exchange, Cohen signs off by asking, "Did N get the Singer?" Please try again or choose an option below. On his last visit, in 1964, he told intelligence officers he wanted to come in from the cold because he was concerned a new Syrian intelligence commander did not like him. Maurice Cohen told his brother he had a new phone line installed in his house and "gave the number of his apartment in Damascus, which I had received in a message just before he'd come home.". 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.". According to Maurice Cohen, this really happened. [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. Hes a trusted friend.. Speaking to Cohen's brother, and to Israeli and Syrian intelligence experts, Sputnik has pieced together a new look at the superspy's incredible life story. Syria has not even disclosed the location of Eli's grave. In 1961, Eli was sent to Buenos Aires in the guise of a Syrian textile businessman. He arrived in Israel on February 8, 1957. 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. The transmissions became longer as well. 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. As Intelligence Chief Meir Amit said, Eli succeeded far beyond the capabilities of most other men.. Israel could not survive without Jordan's water. On September 20, 2016, an unknown Syrian group named 'Syrian Art Treasures' posted a 'Facebook' video showing Eli's body after his execution. Nadia Majald, and together they had three children. One day in 1960 Israeli Intelligence approached him about working for them again. Over the years, her relationship with the Mossad and that of her children, Sophie Ben-Dor, Irit Peleg and Shai Cohen, unraveled. The Spy alternates between Cohens risky schemes with Nadias far more ordinary life. they made great efforts to locate the secret transmission to Israel with help of Soviet-made equipment, in January 1965 they got success. He was convicted in a trial without a defense and sentenced to death. Text messages sent from an NZSIS agent called "Carl" appear to show him brokering a deal. He had an input into and an impact on Syrian national defense and was privy to almost all their secrets. Israeli spy who was captured and executed in Syria, that enabled them to destroy the equipment prepared for the task, "Israel's Secret Operation to Recover the Watch of a Legendary Spy", "Rumors fly that body of legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen was found", "Eli Cohen, notre agent "top secret" Damas", "Mossad's master of deception: the astounding true story of Israeli super-spy Eli Cohen", Widow of Israeli spy Eli Cohen: Netflix drama 'raises my blood pressure', "Unending agony for legendary spy Eli Cohen and his widow", "Israel's secret war against Hitler's scientists", "The History of Elie Cohen: An Egyptian Jew who became Israel's greatest spy", "Will Israel's superspy finally rest in peace? He was driven to the airport, where his wife Nadia saw him off. It, however, did not change the situation. In early 1961, Chaim Herzog, Chief of Military Intelligence and later president of Israel, signed the document authorizing Cohens use as a spy. She had no idea about Elis secret mission and thus did not see the threats and risks involved. To establish his cover, Cohen moved to Buenos Aires in 1961. With time he was taken even more into the confidence of the highest echelons of power. they let him see fortification and the bunkers, weapon concentrated in the area, and their offensive plans.l lieutenant Zaher Al-Din took Eli to the El Hama military camp, where large quantities of new weapons had been stored. All these years, I remained faithful to him. What is perhaps most amazing about Eli Cohen is that he was genuinely liked even loved by so many of the top Syrian leaders. After weeks of surveillance, he was finalized and was put to training. He genuinely fit into life in the Syrian capital, and he was never suspected of being a spy until almost the very end. Ahead of the mission, Cohen had to learn to speak Arabic in a Syrian accent rather than his native Egyptian. 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 Syrias Jewish community, in particular.. [30], Cohen has become a national hero in Israel, and many streets and neighborhoods have been named for him. Sacha Baron Cohen, the Mossad and Netflix. Even today Syria refuses to return his body for burial in Israel. The Syrians and their Russian advisers were alarmed by the intelligence that was seeping out of the country. Get email notification for articles from Yossi Melman, Reproduction of an Israeli stamp being issued to honour the Mossad intelligence agency spy Eli Cohen who was hanged in Damascus. [5], His parents and three brothers left for Israel in 1949, but he remained to finish a degree in electronics and coordinate Jewish and Zionist activities. It was hard to see the distance from the truth in some parts of the series, Sophie Ben-Dor said in an interview with Channel 12 news. Decades after the Eli Cohen affair there are still many questions, some minor, others major - among them, the way in which Syrian counterintelligence identified the Israeli spy (from the archive). ", "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? In March 1963, General Hafez, Eli's friend was appointed minister of defense in salah Al-Birat's cabinet. The agent replied: "Will do, thanks K". From 1961 to 1965, Eli transmitted crucial intelligence data, including that of the Golan Heights, to the Israeli army. 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. Download our mobile app for on-the-go access to the Jewish Virtual Library, Cohen publicly hanged in the Marjeh Square, The Pedagogic Center, The Department for Jewish Zionist Education, The Jewish Agency for Israel, 1998 - 2023 American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise. The daughter of legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen said Sunday it hurt to watch the new Netflix series about her fathers life and execution in Syria, lamenting some historical inaccuracies in the adaptation but praising Sacha Baron Cohens performance. Before leaving, Cohen assured his wife it would be his last trip before he returned home permanently. It could not let Syria succeed and planning a response. We may recall the Egyptian-Jewish spies from the Operation Susannah fiasco. He would also lend money to government officials, and many came to him for advice. [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. It is for these reasons Eli Cohen is known as Israels greatest spy. If I wanted something, I called, they put me through to him immediately. Later, visiting his sister-in-law, Cohen's wife Nadia, he notices that she has a brand new Singer sewing machine in her home. But within a month he had lost his Tel Aviv-based accountancy job. The actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen has a . 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]. His captors later remarked on his noble bearing and his courage despite the horrific Syrian interrogation methods. One day they took Eli to visit the Syrian positions along Israel's border. The Syrian officer readily agreed and Eli immediately passed the information onto Israel. When the Golan was captured in 1967, at almost the end of the Six-Day War, settlers in the north could finally feel relieved. In 1957, Eli joined the Israel Defense Forces as a counterintelligence analyst and later applied for the Israeli intelligence agency 'Mossad,' which rejected him. 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. I beg you my dear Nadia do not spend your life weeping for what has passed. Al-Hafidh then sent his bank details, but the deal went cold. Israel has for decades worked to retrieve his remains. He made friends who moved in highly influential Syrian circles, transmitting his findings back to Israel via radio. [9] The governments of Belgium, Canada, and France tried to persuade the Syrian government to commute the death sentence,[25] but the Syrians refused. Israeli foreign minister Golda Meir led a campaign urging Damascus to consider the consequences of hanging him. But his knowledge of the Arab language and Arab culture, as well as prior work in espionage in Egypt, made him a good candidate for the Mossad. His fathers name was Amin Taabet, and his mothers Saadia Ibrahim. he goes abroad for business and meets Nadia and Sophie in Bat Yam. The Kinneret supplies Israel with most of its water needs. In December 1956, the Jewish Agency assisted Eli to deport to Israel in a vessel. Israels defense planners urgently needed reliable intelligence on the scope of the water diversion project engineering plans, diagrams, maps, and other data and up-to-the-minute assessments of Soviet influence in the Syrian capital, as well as detailed information on plans for the modernization, equipping, and retraining of Syrian forces. Eli Cohen was the man for the job. Since then, Nadia has always counted on him. In the name of the Syrian Arab people, The Military court has decided in its meeting which was held on Muharram 7th, 1385 - May 8th, 1965 to sentence Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen, a resident of Tel Aviv in Occupied Palestine, to death for committing the following crimes: The crime of disguised entry into a military location. "He began writing the number but stopped abruptly and, looking flushed and flustered, mumbled under his breath about needing to run out to the supermarket before it closed. "Soon after, my commanding officers summoned me to my base and informed me that Eli had spoken to them about the phone number incident. 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. The Spy, a six-part Netflix miniseries about Cohen's life, showcases the legendary Mossad agent's relationship with his wife, Nadia (Hadar Ratzon Rotem). He died in 2009. While working as an intelligence officer offer him a job with high pay, Eli didn't say no and become a secret agent. 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. Look after them, raise them up and educate them well, and don't deprive them or yourself of anythingDo what you must, don't deprive the children of a father. Also in Episode 5, viewers see Hafiz assume power after demanding the resignation of Syria's then-president, Nazim al-Qudsi. By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Eliyahu (Eli) Cohen, an Egyptian Jew, was born in Alexandria in 1924. become close friends. 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. In 1960, the national intelligence agency of Israel, 'Mossad,' approached Eli for a classified mission in Syria.