Editing Isser Harel (section)

== Head of the Mossad ==
On 22 September 1952, Yisrael (now Isser) was appointed head of the newly established [[Mossad]]. From his appointment until his resignation on 25 March 1963, Harel also held responsibility for the Shin Bet, where the head of the Shin Bet was subordinate to his directives. This dual role earned Harel the title "Mossad Chief" or "The Head of Israeli Security Services." To emphasize this hierarchy, the Mossad was officially referred to as the "Central Institute for Intelligence and Security" (later renamed the "Mossad for Intelligence and Special Tasks"). After Harel's resignation in 1963, the dual role was abolished and has never been reinstated. Isser Harel was the only individual in the history of the State of Israel to hold a position that consolidated both internal and external intelligence responsibilities, giving him unprecedented power. Harel participated in leadership meetings of the ruling [[Mapai]] party, where he would also report on the activities of opposition parties.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Melman|first1=Yossi|title=It turns out that the Shin Bet spied on the Canaanites|url=https://www.haaretz.co.il/news/law/1.9609361|date=11 March 2021|language=he|work=Haaretz}}</ref>

For eleven years, Harel served as the head of Israeli intelligence services, during which time the organizational structures and operational methods of the security services were formed and refined. These years also saw significant intelligence and security achievements. In 1953, the Shin Bet successfully exposed the right-wing extremist underground, leading to the prosecution of its members. However, some critics claimed that Harel exhibited authoritarian behavior and tended to bypass legal boundaries when necessary, as seen in the case of Operation Bren, where the body of an Israeli officer suspected of selling military secrets to Egypt was secretly disposed of following his accidental death during his arrest.

=== Cold War context and domestic surveillance ===
During the 1950s, at the height of the [[Cold War]], Ben-Gurion determined that Israel's orientation would be pro-Western. Within a short time, the [[Soviet Union]], once friendly toward Israel, became its major adversary. This was during the final years of [[Joseph Stalin]], who, in his growing [[paranoia]], turned his ire against Jews, leading to an [[antisemitism|antisemitic]] campaign that included the [[Doctors' plot]], in which Jewish doctors were accused of conspiring to assassinate him. As reports of the plot began circulating in January 1953, relations between the Soviet Union and Israel began to deteriorate rapidly. Following the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] [[Diplomatic missions of Israel|legation bombing]] in [[Tel Aviv]], relations between the two countries were formally severed. 

Isser Harel, concerned that pro-Soviet parties in Israel might act against Israeli interests and align with the Soviet Union if a global conflict erupted, directed surveillance against the [[Maki (political party)|Israeli Communist Party]] (formerly the Palestine Communist Party), which had been under the surveillance of the Shai since the [[British Mandate for Palestine|Mandate period]]. This surveillance continued under the Shin Bet. In this context, Harel authorized an operation that later became a source of significant controversy: the surveillance and wiretapping of [[Mapam]]—a mainstream, [[Zionism|Zionist]] leftist party with [[Marxist]] leanings, particularly due to the pro-Soviet stance of some of its members, such as [[Moshe Sneh]].

Harel, worried about Sneh's influence and the pro-Soviet faction within Mapam, ordered a [[wiretap]] to be placed in the office of [[Meir Ya'ari]], one of the party's leaders. On 28 January 1953, two Shin Bet agents were caught by Mapam members while installing the wiretap in Ya'ari's office. The incident sparked a public scandal. Shortly afterward, Sneh and his followers broke away from Mapam to form the "Left Faction," advocating a more openly pro-Soviet policy, and eventually left the party altogether. Although the wiretap operation created a political firestorm, the intelligence gained from it was significant.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Melman|first1=Yossi|last2=Raviv|first2=Dan|title=Shadow Wars: The Mossad and the Israeli Intelligence Community|pages=64–65}}</ref>

Harel was also instrumental in the arrest of Aharon Cohen, one of the leaders of Mapam and a prominent figure in the [[Kibbutz Artzi]] movement, who was convicted of espionage in 1958 after meeting with a Soviet diplomat. Cohen's arrest and subsequent conviction sent shockwaves through the Israeli left, as he was considered a mainstream leader within the party. Harel argued that Cohen's actions went beyond legitimate political meetings and crossed into criminal espionage.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Melman|first1=Yossi|title=Aharon Cohen Case: A Controversial Affair in Israeli History|work=Haaretz|date=10 June 1998}}</ref>

=== The "Particular Weekly" incident ===
Harel's concern with internal security extended beyond political parties. He became increasingly worried about the influence of [[Uri Avnery]]'s weekly magazine, "[[HaOlam HaZeh]]", which was known for its anti-establishment stance and its harsh criticism of the [[David Ben-Gurion|Ben-Gurion]] government and the ruling [[Mapai]] party. In response, Harel authorized the funding of a competing weekly magazine, "Rimon", which was designed to attract readers away from "HaOlam HaZeh" by offering a similar, sensational style of journalism. The effort was a failure—Rimon failed to gain significant readership and quickly folded. This attempt to subvert a legitimate media outlet using state funds was widely criticized and is considered a low point in Harel's career.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Melman|first1=Yossi|last2=Raviv|first2=Dan|title=Shadow Wars: The Mossad and the Israeli Intelligence Community|pages=65–66}}</ref>

=== Resignation and the German Scientists Affair ===
Harel's long and distinguished career came to an end in 1963, in the wake of the [[Operation Damocles|German scientists in Egypt affair]]. 

This incident involved a group of German scientists who were assisting the Egyptian government in developing advanced rocket technology, which posed a significant threat to Israel. Harel viewed the presence of these scientists as a grave danger and launched a covert campaign to intimidate and disrupt their work. Mossad agents in Europe attempted to discourage the scientists through a variety of means, including sending threatening letters and engaging in sabotage. 

However, after two Mossad operatives were caught in [[Switzerland]] for issuing threats against one of the scientists’ daughters, Prime Minister [[David Ben-Gurion]] ordered the Mossad to halt its operations. Harel, convinced that the scientists represented an existential threat to Israel, strongly disagreed with Ben-Gurion's decision. He believed that Ben-Gurion underestimated the danger and felt that the Prime Minister's focus on maintaining positive relations with [[West Germany]] was misguided. 

Despite Harel's protests, Ben-Gurion stood firm. Faced with this disagreement, Harel resigned from his post as head of the Mossad and Shin Bet in March 1963. His resignation marked the end of an era in Israeli intelligence, as Harel had been the central figure in shaping the country's security services since their inception.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Melman|first1=Yossi|title=The Resignation of Isser Harel|work=Haaretz|date=15 March 1963}}</ref> Harel's departure from the intelligence community left a lasting legacy, but also set the stage for years of tension between him and his successors, particularly [[Meir Amit]], who replaced him as head of the Mossad.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Naveh|first1=Nahik|title=Tensions in Israeli Intelligence: Harel vs. Amit|publisher=Ma'ariv Books|year=1988}}</ref>