released. Lotz returned to Israel and started various business ventures
without great success.
Wolfgang Lotz was to be remembered for the priceless information
he obtained and delivered to Israeli intelligence prior to the Six-Day
War, and for succeeding in keeping secret his identity as an Israeli
spy. Lotz has gone down in intelligence history as “Tel Aviv’s Eye in
Cairo,” akin to Eli Cohen, recalled as “Our Man in Damascus.”LOUK, MORDECHAI.A Spanish-Moroccan-born Jew, Louk immi-
grated to Israel in 1949. In 1961 while performing national service in
the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), he was with his unit on maneuvers
near the Egyptian border at the Gaza Strip. Being in debt to many
people, he slipped across the border, surrendered to an Egyptian offi-
cer, and asked for political asylum. The Egyptian police arrested him,
suspecting that he was an Israeli spy. In the Egyptian prison, he suf-
fered from depression and twice attempted suicide. While he was in
the hospital, Egyptian intelligence concluded that he might be of use
to them and proposed to him that he spy for them against Israel. Louk
accepted the offer.
For six months, he underwent a series of training courses in espi-
onage. By summer 1962, Egyptian intelligence deemed him ready for
espionage activity. He was assigned to work in West Europe, mainly
France, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. His chief task was to make
contacts with Israelis working in or visiting these countries and
gather from them economic and political information about Israel. He
was also asked to trace Israeli secret agents in those countries, with
their names and addresses as well as information on their families.
He was given a camera to photograph any Israelis he might meet. His
initial monthly salary was $150 plus authorized travel expenses. He
received an Egyptian passport under the assumed name of
Mouhamad Hamdi Habal.
Louk was sent first to Damascus to conceal any traces of his orig-
inating from Egypt. In Damascus he was given another passport in
the assumed name of Joseph Dahan, a common name for a Moroccan
Jew. He was allowed to use either passport on his travels according
to circumstances.
Egyptian intelligence had no notion that the Mossadhad been
keeping an eye on Louk from the moment he defected from his IDF168 • LOUK, MORDECHAI06-102 (03) H-P.qxd 3/24/06 7:25 AM Page 168