In 1954, a group of young Jewish idealists in Egypt were recruited by Israeli intelligence to plant bombs in Western institutions, only to be betrayed by their own double agent handler before the mission even began. Arrests, torture, a show trial, two executions, and a suicide followed. Back in Israel, the fallout was just as devastating: forged documents, cover-ups, and a bitter vendetta between Defense Minister Pinhas Lavon and Prime Minister David Ben Gurion that tore the ruling party apart. This is part two of our series on Israel’s most embarrassing intelligence blunder. It reads like fiction. It wasn’t.
Here are links to Unpacking Israeli History’s 3 Part Series on the Suez Canal Crisis.
Israel’s Forgotten War: The Suez Crisis (Part 1)
Combustion: The secret pact that ignited the Suez War (Part 2)
Fallout: How the Suez Crisis rewired the Middle East forever (Part 3)
This episode is sponsored by Tony Felzen in honor of Connor, and by Andrea & Larry Gill. To sponsor an episode or to be in touch, please email noam@unpacked.media.
Check out this episode on Youtube. This podcast is brought to you by Unpacked, an OpenDor Media brand.
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For other podcasts from Unpacked, check out:
Jewish History Nerds
Soulful Jewish Living
Stars of David with Elon Gold