Eli Zeira Explained
| Eli Zeira |
| Native Name: | אלי זעירא |
| Native Name Lang: | he |
| Birth Date: | 4 April 1928 |
| Birth Place: | Tel Aviv, |
| Allegiance: |  Israel |
| Branch: | Israel Defense Forces |
| Rank: | Major General |
| Serviceyears: | 1946–1974 |
| Commands: | Director of Aman |
Eli Zeira (Hebrew: אלי זעירא) (born April 4, 1928) is a former major general in the Israel Defense Forces. He was director of Aman, Israel's military intelligence, during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. He is most remembered for his ill-conceived prewar assessment that Egypt and Syria would not attack (also known as "The Concept"),[1] [2] despite intelligence to the contrary.
The postwar Agranat Commission, set to investigate the reasons for the costly war, found Zeira to be negligent of his duty, and he resigned.[3]
In 2004, former Mossad Director-General Zvi Zamir accused Zeira of leaking the identity of Ashraf Marwan, an Egyptian billionaire who served as a Mossad informant.[4] The State Prosecutor's Office opened a criminal investigation, which proved inconclusive and was closed in 2012.[5]
Notes and References
- Shlaim, Avi "The Iron Wall -Israel and the Arab World." 2000. . Page 319.
- ^ Steven, Stewart, "The Spymasters of Israel." 1980, ninth printing 1988. . Page 358:" [Zeira] was one of the architects of what was known as 'the concept.' Simply stated, the concept laid down first that the Arabs were not ready for an all-out war with Israel. Though they could launch a limited war, they knew perfectly well that Israel would not feel bound by the rules of that game, and a limited war would quickly escalate into a general one. Second, Zeira's concept laid down, that if there was to be a war, it would be a short one. The third assumption was that in an overall war, the Arabs would be quickly defeated."
- Dayan, Moshe, "Story of My Life." . 1976. Page 606. "The commission found that Maj. Gen. Eliyahu Zeira, 'in view of his grave failure ... cannot continue in his post as chief of Military Intelligence.'"
- Book: Bar-Joseph . Uri . The Angel: The Egyptian Spy Who Saved Israel . 2016 . HarperCollins . New York . 9780062420138 . 299–300.
- News: State to close case against former IDF intel chief. Ynetnews . 8 July 2012 . Magnezi . Aviel .
