"James Bond Pale in": Abraham Dar, Establishes the Egyptian Spy Network, dies at 94

The intelligence officer, who set up the squad unearthed in the "Bish Business" and struggled to release its members and led the operation to rescue Fort Said Jews, passed away at his home in Atlit. After release, he turned to the industry and ran the Delek company. "He was a bastard, fearless - the perfect agent figure," said his son, director Gidi Dr

(In Video: Evening Appreciation for Prisoners of the Busish Business Affair, held in the President's House in 1989)

Avraham Der, a Palmach fighter, intelligence officer who led special operations, agricultural and industrial, passed away at his home in Atlit and he is 94. Dr. Established in Egypt in 1951, the spy squad that later became involved in the "bish business". As he saw it, he was angered and disgusted that he betrayed his men, but he continued to be called to the flag and to perform secret missions that cannot be revealed today. "James Bond blamed him," said his son, filmmaker Gidi Dr.

Der was born in 1925 in Jerusalem to a privileged family. His mother was from the Seton family who lived in Jerusalem for many generations. His father, of Yemeni-English descent, fought in World War I in British Army uniforms in Gallipoli. When he was 17, he enlisted in the Palmach, and according to his son, since those days in training, he has been passionate about farming. Therefore, throughout the years and until recently, he has been growing plantations alongside his other occupations.

A year after his recruitment, in early 1943, Der was sent to the first naval course in Caesarea. Later, on a mission in Persia and Iraq, he joined the Naval Company and participated in the immigration missions of the Immigration B Institute, and later was appointed to command, along with Zalman Flower, the Palmach Procurement Department, as part of the Haifa port company, until the establishment of the Navy. "He was deputy head of the Navy intelligence department. His background qualified him for the intelligence roles that the young army needed at the time; he knew about Burein five languages, including Arabic at the mother tongue level, plus extensive education and a rich cultural background.

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"He was an intellectual and an irresistible man." Dr.

Abraham Der the first head of a Jewish spy network in Egypt in his youth (Photo: official website)

"He was a bastard, one who knew how to work with smugglers, obtain weapons, have manipulative, fearless abilities, with cultural understanding and other traits that created a character who is the perfect agent figure," his son said. He was later recruited into Unit 131 which was intended to operate in enemy states. Israel was then without proper intelligence on what was happening in Egypt and it was decided to send Dr.

A 25-year-old, alone in the country of an enemy in the form of a businessman named "John Darling," there set up a network of spies whose members were local Jewish youth. It was a dormant network that, if necessary, would be used to stir up a fight against King Farouk - but Farouk was dropped as early as 1952. Avri Elad replaced Dar in May 1954 in early July of that year, the squad started to operate in what is known as Operation Susannah. Their task was to carry out attacks on Western targets in an attempt to damage Egypt's relations with the Western powers. According to the plan, the members of the squad had to carry out sabotage operations on July 23, the day of the coup in Egypt - but the plan went awry as the baggage on the body of Philip Nathanson, a member of the chain, began to ignite on the steps of a movie theater in Alexandria.

The network was exposed by the Egyptians and the consequences were extremely harsh: Meir (Max) Bint, an officer in Unit 131, who was not connected to the same network, was arrested, tortured severely in prison and put an end to his life. Network member Joseph Cremona also died in the Egyptian prison. It is unknown whether he died of torture or suicide. Network members Moshe Marzouk and the left auxiliary were brought to the gallows. Victor Levy, Robert Desa and Philip Nathanson were sentenced to life in prison. Marcel Niño - who also passed away recently - was sentenced to 15 years in prison, with Meir ascribed and Meir Saffron to seven years in prison each. The "bish business" was later also called "the affair" and the question was always "Who gave the order?" Continued to resonate for many more years. With the fall of the network, Der was urgently requested to reach Egypt and act to save her friends. In the bow in Sudan he had almost boarded a plane, where he learned that his name had been revealed and he returned to Israel. The death of his friends and the imprisonment of other members of the network caused him great anger.

Spy Marcel Nino is not, but "Susanna" is still here

"He was not looking for power or politics"

Der continued to serve in the Intelligence Division and he led the operation to assassinate Mustafa Hafez, the man who commanded the redemption squads that infiltrated through Israel's hacked borders and carried out attacks in the school's communities in the 1950s. The plan was to send Hafez a cohesive package with a double agent. In the explosion of the package in July 1956, Hafez and his staff were killed. The same operation also eliminated his deputy who was sitting in Jordan.

A few months later, after the outbreak of Operation Kadesh, Der, together with Luba Eliav and with the help of French forces, led an operation to rescue dozens of Fort Said Jews, fearing that they would be harmed by the Egyptians. He then planned to continue collaborating with the French and release his friends from the prison in Cairo, but the fighting stopped before they reached Cairo. At the end of the war, he was convinced that his friends would be released in a prisoner exchange deal, but that did not happen. He saw this as a state betrayal of the people she had sent to task and the pain had accompanied him all his life.

Even at the end of the Six Day War, 1967, Israel almost gave up on their release again. After a conversation with Der Meir Amit, the head of the Mossad, the latter threatened to resign if they were not released. IDF prisoners, pilots and cruise fighters also insisted that the squad members who had already been in prison for 13 years be released before them, and so it has been. Since then, a party has been held every year at Der's house, where all the prisoners of captivity participated, together with the prisoners of the six days in jail.

"The anger at what his friends did in Egypt did not hurt his sense of mission and loyalty to the country." Dr.

Avraham Der (Photo: Official Website)

Der, who retired from the army after Operation Kadesh, continued to work in agriculture for many years and turned to the industrial and business sectors. In the 1970s he ran the Delek Company and then the Export Institute. Then he turned to private business. In between, he continued to be called special intelligence missions. He was nicknamed "Unit A" (Abraham Der).

"His anger at what his friends did in Egypt never hurt his sense of mission and loyalty to the country. He was a true patriot," his son said. However, he noted, "Although he was in close contact with senior security officials, he never sought to be in the security or political system. In essence, there was no military, no power or politics. He was an intellectual and an irresistible man. He was a very charismatic and It's humble. " Dar left a wife, a scout, five children, 17 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. He will be laid to rest on Wednesday at 1:00 pm in the sea.

A reception at the home of President of the State, Zalman Shazar, for the shameful business of their return from Egypt, 1968

Welcome to the President of the State, Zalman Shazar, to the shameful business of Egypt, 1968. Pictured, right to left: Robert Dessa, Philip Nathanson, Marcel Nino, President's military third, Zalman Shazar (Photo: Wikipedia drum, official website)