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10 - PEOPLE/(N-S)/Yitzhak Shamir.md

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+category: "Intelligence & Government"
 tags:
   - Person
-  - Politics
+  - CIA
+  - Politician
   - Israel
-  - Intelligence
+  - Soviet
+summary: "Israeli Prime Minister and former LEHI member who authorized intelligence sharing with the Soviet Union and oversaw covert arms deals with Iran and the Iran-Israel Joint Committee."
 ---
+
 [[Yitzhak Shamir]] was a prominent [[Israel|Israeli]] politician who served as Prime Minister of [[Israel]]. He was a former member of [[LEHI]] (Stern Gang), a Jewish terrorist group, and later became a prominent figure in [[Mossad]], serving as operations chief for [[Europe]].[^1]
 
 ### Anti-American Sentiments and Soviet Relations
 
-[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was known for his anti-[[USA|American]] sentiments, stemming from his belief that the [[USA|U.S.]] was partially responsible for the Holocaust. He sought to open lines of communication between [[Israel]] and the [[East Bloc]] countries, particularly after becoming prime minister in 1983. He authorized intelligence exchanges with the [[Soviet Union]], including sanitized [[USA|American]] intelligence reports about nuclear issues and evaluations of [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] nuclear technology.[^1]
+[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was known for his anti-[[United States|American]] sentiments, stemming from his belief that the [[United States|U.S.]] was partially responsible for the Holocaust. He sought to open lines of communication between [[Israel]] and the [[East Bloc]] countries, particularly after becoming prime minister in 1983. He authorized intelligence exchanges with the [[Soviet Union]], including sanitized [[United States|American]] intelligence reports about nuclear issues and evaluations of [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] nuclear technology.[^1]
 
 ### Coalition Government and Arms Trading
 
-[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was a key figure in the [[Likud Party]]. He formed a bizarre coalition government with [[Shimon Peres]] of the [[Labor Party]] in 1984, sharing the roles of prime minister and foreign minister. [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] had a close relationship with [[Rafi Eitan]], who served as his counterterrorism adviser and later ran the [[Iran-Israel Joint Committee]]. [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was involved in the decision to supply [[Iran]] with arms in its war with [[Saddam Hussein|Saddam Hussein's]] [[Iraq]], believing it was in [[Israel|Israel's]] national security interest.[^1]
+[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was a key figure in the [[Likud Party]]. He formed a bizarre coalition government with [[Shimon Peres]] of the [[Labor Party]] in 1984, sharing the roles of prime minister and foreign minister. [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] had a close relationship with [[Rafi]], who served as his counterterrorism adviser and later ran the [[Iran-Israel Joint Committee]]. [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was involved in the decision to supply [[Iran]] with arms in its war with [[Saddam Hussein|Saddam Hussein's]] [[Iraq]], believing it was in [[Israel|Israel's]] national security interest.[^1]
 
 ### Pollard Espionage Case
 
-[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was also involved in the [[Jonathan Pollard]] espionage case, authorizing the transfer of [[Israel|Israeli]] intelligence gleaned from the [[USA|United States]] to the [[Soviet Union]]. During his tenure as prime minister (1984-1986), Shamir authorized some of the [[Jonathan Pollard|Pollard]] material to be sanitized, retyped, and turned over to Soviet intelligence officials as a gesture of Israeli goodwill. This decision was consistent with his personal and political beliefs, as he viscerally disliked the [[United States]] and was fascinated with strong regimes, viewing the U.S. as "soft, bourgeois, materialistic and effete." He believed that by relaying the Pollard information to the Soviets, he was demonstrating that [[Israel]] could be a much more dependable and important collaborator in the [[Middle East]] than the "fickle" Arabs. Shamir's actions, if exposed, would have meant the end of the increasingly shaky Likud coalition and put the overall Israeli–United States relationship at risk.[^1][^2]
+[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was also involved in the [[Jonathan Pollard]] espionage case, authorizing the transfer of [[Israel|Israeli]] intelligence gleaned from the [[United States|United States]] to the [[Soviet Union]]. During his tenure as prime minister (1984-1986), Shamir authorized some of the [[Jonathan Pollard|Pollard]] material to be sanitized, retyped, and turned over to Soviet intelligence officials as a gesture of Israeli goodwill. This decision was consistent with his personal and political beliefs, as he viscerally disliked the [[United States]] and was fascinated with strong regimes, viewing the U.S. as "soft, bourgeois, materialistic and effete." He believed that by relaying the Pollard information to the Soviets, he was demonstrating that [[Israel]] could be a much more dependable and important collaborator in the [[Middle East]] than the "fickle" Arabs. Shamir's actions, if exposed, would have meant the end of the increasingly shaky Likud coalition and put the overall Israeli–United States relationship at risk.[^1][^2]
 
 [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] was furious when the [[Oliver North|North]] group leaked the [[Jonathan Pollard|Pollard]] story, and sought to nip the newcomers in the bud.[^1]
 
 ### Palestinian and Regional Policy
 
-[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] opposed [[USA|U.S.]] peace initiatives that would involve giving up territory in the [[West Bank]] and [[Gaza Strip]], and believed that [[Jordan]] should be the Palestinian state. Despite this public stance, [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] initiated secret attempts to negotiate a solution to the Palestinian situation with the [[Palestine Liberation Organization|PLO]], discussing a plan to unseat [[King Hussein of Jordan|King Hussein]] of [[Jordan]] and establish a Palestinian state there.[^1]
+[[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] opposed [[United States|U.S.]] peace initiatives that would involve giving up territory in the [[West Bank]] and [[Gaza Strip]], and believed that [[Jordan]] should be the Palestinian state. Despite this public stance, [[Yitzhak Shamir|Shamir]] initiated secret attempts to negotiate a solution to the Palestinian situation with the [[Palestine Liberation Organization|PLO]], discussing a plan to unseat [[King Hussein of Jordan|King Hussein]] of [[Jordan]] and establish a Palestinian state there.[^1]
 
 ### Nuclear and Chemical Weapons Programs
 
@@ -31,5 +35,5 @@ tags:
 
 ### Footnotes
 
-[^1]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. _Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network_. TrineDay, 1992. (Hereafter, "Profits of War") 
+[^1]: Ben-Menashe, Ari. _Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network_. TrineDay, 1992. 
 [^2]: Hersh, Seymour M. _The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy_. Random House, 1991. Chapter 21.