Historical Dictionary of Israeli Intelligence

ing and leaving Tammuz-1 was to be last light so that the aircraft

would be directly in front of the setting sun, making it more difficult

for the Iraqi air defenses to see them. Flying time was estimated ac-

cording to a route that minimized the chances of being detected by

Jordanian, Saudi, or Iraqi radar. The bombing took place as planned,

and all Israeli pilots and planes returned safely to base.

OPHIR, ZADOK.Ophir, an Israeli Security Agency(ISA) case offi-

cer, in 1972 used the cover of first secretary in the Israeli embassy in

Brussels, where he gathered information on Palestinian activities in

Europe. In September 1972 Muhammad Rabah, a Moroccan double

agent, attempted to kill Ophir, who was his case officer. Rabah

phoned the Israeli embassy and was able to lure Ophir, and his col-

league Baruch Cohen, to Café Prince in the town. Near the café he

shot both of them. Ophir was wounded and his life was saved; Cohen

died. The investigation in Israel revealed a grave breach in the basics

of the intelligence tradecraft. It learned that in 1970 pictures of Ophir

and of Cohen in army uniform were published in the Israel Defense

Forces album marking 1,000 days since the 1967 Six-Day War.

Rabah escaped after the assassination attempt, but was later caught

and imprisoned. See also WRATH OF GOD OPERATION.

OSTROVSKY, VICTOR (1949– ).Born in Canada, Ostrovsky grew

up in Israel. In his childhood, he showed an early inclination for

painting. At age 18, he was conscripted for national service in the Is-

raeli Navy and in due course was promoted to the rank of lieutenant.

In October 1984, having completed his national service, Ostrovsky

joined the Mossad. He joined because he believed that he would be

able to retire at a young age with a good pension, as was usual for

Mossad case officers. Ostrovsky underwent the regular training and

was assigned to become a case officer. However, because of his be-

havior, in March 1986 he was dismissed while still a trainee after just

17 months. Thereupon he resolved to obtain his “pension” in another

way, namely, by writing a best-seller about the Mossad. His first book

on the subject, By Way of Deception: The Making and Unmaking of

a Mossad Officer, was published in September 1990.

Before that, the Mossad and the Israeli government had made their

share of mistakes. First, Ostrovsky’s trainers visited him in his Toronto

apartment, trying to convince him not to publish the book. There had

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