R.+Manuel+Carvalho

This is the OFFICIAL wikispaces™ page of Raúl Manuel Carvalho, aka Doctor Swag. Stay tuned for updates.


 * Question: **

How effective were the actions of the Israeli Mossad's Operation Wrath of God, in terms of the events that took place after the 1972 Munich Olympics, and the book //Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counterterrorist Team//?


 * A.) Scope of Investigation **

The purpose of this project is to learn about what happened to the Israeli national team at the 1972 Olympics and Munich, Germany; as well as how the Israeli Mossad responded to the attack on their countrymen. The scope of my investigation is evaluating the Mossad, and their actions throughout the years after 1972. My methods start off by reading the novel an, then doing in-depth research on the actual events that took place, using the book as my primary source to come to a conclusion as to whether or not they achieved their goals.


 * B.) Summary of Evidence **

**__1972 Munich Olympics__**
 * “Tensions were running high between Palestine and Israel,” but most of the world was in a calm state entering Munich in 1972, there was a happy mood at the Olympics at the time. Many were unsure of what to make of the unrest in the Middle East, as Palestine was lead by Yasser Arafat, who founded the Fatah Party. Israel was headed by Prime Minister Golda Meir. (1)
 * During the second week of the Games, members of the Israeli National team were taken hostage in the middle of the night by 8 armed members of Palestinian terrorist group Black September. Black September was an organization with ambiguous foundations, that was very heavily linked to the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization), as well as Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who was chairman of the PLO. Direct connections between Arafat and Black September were never conclusively proven, however evidence strongly shows the PLO as financial backers of Black September. (2)
 * Before the events took place, the Israelis had stated that they “feared for their safety”, in what appeared to be a very relaxed Olympic Games. Their dwelling areas were on the outside edge of the Olympic Village, making them susceptible to attack. (3)
 * The Black September members proceeded to take members of the team hostage, and demanded the release of 234 Palestinian prisoners. In the end, Black September murdered 6 Israeli athletes, 5 Israeli coaches, and 1 West-German police officer. In an attempted rescue attempt, German police killed 5 Black September members and managed to imprison the other three, who were later released by West Germany.

**__Operation Wrath of God__**


 * I. Mission **
 * After the Olympics, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir “was under a lot of pressure to take action” in response to Black September’s massacre. Meir commissioned a Mossad team to hunt down and systematically eliminate those linked to the hostage taking. (4)
 * One of the key concepts to Meir’s plan was the concept of “plausible deniability”. This meant that the Mossad’s actions could not be tied back to Israel, and the agents who carried them out would not officially be acting on Israel’s behalf. This would allow Meir to maintain innocence in any crimes committed. (5)
 * Yuval Aviv (who goes by the name Avner in the book) is a claimed member of the Israeli Mossad and “hand-chosen by Prime Minister Meir to lead a team of Mossad agents in retaliation for the events of the Munich Olympic Games. It is hotly disputed whether or not Aviv’s claims to be the source of the book Vengeance, or even to have been a part of the Mossad are true. (6)
 * To set the plan in action, Mossad leaders designed specialized teams to take on the action. “Fifteen [were] people divided into five squads: "Aleph", two trained killers; "Bet", two guards who would shadow the Alephs; "Het", two agents who would establish cover for the rest of the team by renting hotel rooms, apartments, cars, and so on; "Ayin", comprising between six and eight agents who formed the backbone of the operation, shadowing targets and establishing an escape route for the Aleph and Bet squads; and "Qoph", two agents specializing in communications.” (7)
 * “Avner’s” was the leader of a team selected by Mossad leader Mike Harari (referred to under the pseudonym Ephraim) to carry out assassinations. (8) The goal of this team was to take out the leaders of the terrorist groups, because they are “"unlike military forces... have no life power of their own... they must be supplied with everything they need for survival; money, weapons, papers, hideouts, training, and recruits." Once they have their "lifeline severed, a whole network of them will disappear." (9)
 * Prior to the mission, Harari had made it clear to “strike in creative ways” so that the terrorists knew they had been “touched”. (10) There was to be “zero collateral damage,” (11) Harari stated that a a mission would be successful “if only three of the men are killed. However, if the unit killed all eleven on the list but also killed one innocent, the mission would be a failure.” (12)
 * II. Targets **
 * Ali Hassan Salameh - “generally regarded as the main architect of the massacre at Munich” (13)
 * Abu Daoud - “explosives expert of Black September” (14)
 * Mahmoud Hamshari - “intellectual, diplomat, and spokesman for the Palestinian cause” (15)
 * Wael Zwaiter - “a poet” (16)
 * Dr. Basil al-Kubaisi - “law professor...purchaser of weapons” (17)
 * Kamal Nasser - “public relations chief for Fatah... and the official spokesman of the PLO” (18)
 * Kemal Adwan - “in charge of sabotage operations for al Fatah” (19)
 * Mahmoud Yussuf Najjer - “one of the highest-ranking officials in the Palestinian movement” (20)
 * Mohammed Boudia - Algerian actor, “well known in Paris” (21)
 * Hussein Abad al-Chir- “one of the PLO’s main contacts with the KGB” (22)
 * Dr. Wadi Haddad - “universally acknowledged mastermind of terrorism” (23)


 * C.) Evaluation of Sources **

**Jonas, George. Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-terrorist Team. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984. Print.**

This book was written by a Canadian Journalist named George Jonas, a well known author who reported on the 1972 Munich Olympics. Jonas writes the book detailing the the Mossad and “Operation Wrath of God”, informing the reader in narrative about Mossad tactics, as well as the bombings in Munich. The topic is very exciting, meaning it was written to sell copies. This book as a whole is extremely important, because it shows the developments of the entire plot from the Olympics, through the assassinations out of retaliation, the world’s response to these events as well as real interviews with people involved. It is extremely detailed, and brings the whole story to light, through different perspectives of different individuals involved with the incident. The story is written as more a narrative than an analysis, uses some artistic liberties and sensationalizes the plot to some extent.


 * Pierpaoli, Jr., Paul G. "Black September Organization." //World History: The Modern Era//. **** ABC-CLIO, **** 2012. Web. 13 Mar. 2012. **

This article was found in the databases at ABC-CLIO, an online encyclopedia. Chuck Fahrer, a history professor at Georgia State University, wrote the article. This article provides an overview of the Black September organization, from their origins to their motives and achievements. It's purpose is to inform the reader about Black September, and show who the group really was. The source’s aim is to provide good information that will draw subscribers to their database. It is lengthy enough for me to truly learn about Black September, as well as their involvement in the Munich Olympics. It provides a lot of value, because I am now able to connect Black September to my project, as well as learn their origins and why they did what they did. Additionally, the major events listed can also be tied back. The piece is not very long and does not go into many specifics, what you would expect from an Encyclopedia source. It provides major events, but a primary source could be used in addition for much better research.

**D.) Analysis**

When evaluating the effectiveness of this Operation, it is crucial to establish what would be considered successful. In doing so, one would need to take a deeper look at how the assassinations played out, and the implications that they carried with them. Due to the secrecy of the mission, details are not available from all of the “hits,” only the ones in which Yuval Aviv (Avner) was directly involved in.

The first target Avner’s team tracked down was Wael Zwaiter, said to be an “easy hit.”(24) They stalked his apartment for a few days, the on October 16, 1972, they entered his apartment and waited for him. After receiving proper identification, they shot and killed him, without leaving a trace. This assassination was completed very well and in a swift manner, however, it did not draw much attention, therefore not sending a big enough of a message to the terrorist organization. Their next mark was Mahmoud Hamshari, whom they developed an intricate plot in which he would reveal his identity over the phone to a phony “Italian journalist” and after his identity was confirmed, explosives at the base of the phone would be detonated. (25) This plan went off without a hitch in early December, 1972. With the help of a Parisian organization, known only as “Le Group”, Avner’s team quietly and successfully orchestrated the deaths of three more members of the list: Abad al-Chir, Basil al-Kubaisi, and Mohammed Boudia (26).

Following these assassinations, Ephraim (Harari) ordered a change in plans: he wanted Avner to give him his intelligence for a Israeli state-sponsored attack on Mahmoud Yussuf Najjer, Kamal Nasser, and Kemal Adwan in Beirut. Avner was told that those three were taken off the list, and “no longer his problem” (27). A group of 40 Israeli commandos managed to use the covert mission to assassinate the three men, as well as almost 100 PLO soldiers. What generally is looked at as a major victory is marred by the death of two innocents: Najjer’s wife and neighbor.

While this was going on, the Mossad was in the midst of recovering from what can only be considered one of their worst disasters. A group of Mossad operatives, under the direction of Ephraim, planned to assassinate PLO figure-head Salameh. They spent over a year following bad leads, before they finally received what appeared to be solid intelligence, placing Salameh in Lillehammer, Norway. The team did not want to take the chance of Salameh getting away, and decided to act quickly. In their haste, they failed to register proper identification, and shot and killed a waiter who closely resembled Salameh, on July 21, 1973. As they tried to get away, two operatives were arrested by local police, and while being interrogated, gave up the names of their team members, as well as the fact that they were working for the government of Israel (28). The team members were put on a public trial, in which five were convicted, and the details of the Operation were brought to light (29). It was widely hailed as a great disgrace to Israel.

To make matters worse, Avner’s team heard of what was referred to as the “Lillehammer Incident” and tried to take on the task of killing Salameh. His team thought they had Salameh cornered in Switzerland, but escaped as Avner was forced to kill three Palestinian hostiles that were not on the list (30). Unlike Lillehammer, however, Avner’s unit was able to escape without detection. With this second failed attempt on Salameh, as well as the death of two agents, Ephraim decided to call an end to the Operation. When it was all said and done, eight of the eleven on the original list had been killed, as well as one replacement (31). Along the way there was a lot of collateral damage, that simply cannot be overlooked when evaluating this mission.

**E.) Conclusion**

It is truly impossible to classify the Operation Wrath of God as successful or unsuccessful. The mission was extremely efficient in some aspects, as the majority of those on the list were assassinated, and a firm message was sent to the Palestinian Liberation Organization and Black September terrorist groups. It also sent a message to the entire world, that Israel was not to be taken lightly. On the other hand, the mission failed to kill Ali Hassan Salameh, the biggest player on the list, and led to multiple casualties of those not on the list, including two team members. If assessed by the measure that innocents were killed, then this could be viewed as a complete failure. And while this was a point stated by Harari, the goals achieved by Aviv’s team are not to be ignored. This mission, a success or not, will go down as one of the greatest events in modern-Israeli history.


 * F.) List of Sources & Word Count **

Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Ed. Philip Mattar. Vol. 1. 2nd ed. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. p485-486. From Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Jonas, George. Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-terrorist Team. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984. Print. 46.

Pierpaoli, Jr., Paul G. "Black September Organization." World History: The Modern Era. ABC-CLIO,  2012. Web. 13 Mar. 2012.

Reeve, Simon. One Day in September: The Full Story of the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and the Israeli Revenge Operation "Wrath of God". New York City: Arcade Publishing, 2006.

Simpson, Larry. "The Munich Olympics" Encyclopedia of Arab-Israeli Conflict, 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2012.


 * Word Count: 2,071 **

**Endnotes:**

1.) Simpson, Larry. "The Munich Olympics" Encyclopedia of Arab-Israeli Conflict, 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2012.

2.) Pierpaoli, Jr., Paul G. "Black September Organization." //World History: The Modern Era//. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 13 Mar. 2012.

3.) Simpson

4.) Jonas, George. Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-terrorist Team. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984. Print. 46.

5.) ibid, 29

6.) ibid, 13

7.) Reeve, Simon. One Day in September: The Full Story of the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre and the Israeli Revenge Operation "Wrath of God". New York City: Arcade Publishing, 2006. 143.

8.) Jonas, 10

9.) ibid, 76

10.) ibid, 90

11.) ibid, 91

12.) ibid, 101

13.) ibid, 93

14.) ibid, 93

15.) ibid, 93

16.) ibid, 93

17.) ibid, 93

18.) ibid, 93

19.) ibid, 93

20.) ibid, 94

21.) ibid, 94

22.) ibid, 94

23.) ibid, 94

24.) ibid, 116

25.) ibid, 156

26.) Reeve, 211

27.) Jonas, 196

28.) Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Ed. Philip Mattar. Vol. 1. 2nd ed. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. p485-486. From Gale Virtual Reference Library.

29.) Reeve, 188

30.) Jonas, 267

31.) ibid, 330

Annotated Bibliography: **Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Ed. Philip Mattar. Vol. 1. 2 nd ed. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. p485-486. From Gale Virtual Reference Library. **

**Origin:** This encyclopedia entry was written by Philip Mattar, a Palestinian-American historian, who is considered an expert on the topic, having taught history at prestigious institutions such as Yale and Georgetown.

**Purpose:** This article was written to show the connection between the Black September group, and the Munich Olympics. The issue was very public, and this article provides a look at how Black September influenced the events, rather than their background.

**Value:** This source goes more in depth into Black September's ties to Munich than the other source, and moves on to their actions that took place following the Olympics. It clearly states the connection that I need to move on with my Investigation. In addition, it connects Black September to the Mossad, which is also extremely important in my research.

**Limitations:** The main limitations of this source are that it does not provide much background, nor is it very long. It does not go into much detail.

** Simpson, Larry. "The Munich Olympics" Encyclopedia of Arab-Israeli Conflict, 2012. Web. 17 Feb. 2012.**

** Origin: ** This article was found in The Encyclopedia of Arab-Israeli Conflict and was written Spencer C. Tucker, a historian who has written or edited 30 or more books on military history. Tucker is a known expert on Israeli conflict. The Encyclopedia details many important events in Israeli history.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">** Purpose: ** The purpose of this source is to inform the reader about many important issues in Israeli and Arab history, this article specifically about the Munich games in 1972. While this encyclopedia was undoubtedly not a bestseller, I am sure it made a nice profit from all those interested in Arab-Israeli conflict.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">** Value: ** The value of this source is that it gives a nice summary of the events that took place in Munich in 1972, without dragging on. It is brief, but very informative and provides a good base for future learning on the topic. It talks about the events preceding the Olympics in Germany, and puts in context with the issues around the world. It also delves into the Israeli connections with the Olympics and the bombings that took place, as well as the international response.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 110%;">** Limitations: ** The piece is somewhat short, and does not provide a lot of detail in to the topic. It is not a primary source, so it was written after the fact and definitely is missing details pertinent to my Investigation.