Last month I saw the writer/activist Yossi Gurvitz at a Tel Aviv cafe, and in seeking to explain to me how much influence rightwing extremists have inside the Israeli power structure, he described the conspiracy to kill Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in November 1995.
“This story rarely gets told,” he said.
We all know that Yigal Amir killed Rabin. But we don’t know much about the broader conspiracy. And while other conspirators were charged and convicted, Gurvitz said that the investigation was incomplete and feeble. If it had been vigorous, he said, it would have inflamed tensions inside Israeli society, and risked wider violence.
Above is a video. Gurvitz later wrote me a pithy summary of the points. First read this summary, then I’ll summarize the video. Gurvitz:
Three people were convicted of direct involvement in Rabin’s assassination: Yigal Amir, his brother Hagai Amir, and Dror ‘Adani, all former Hesder [religious] troops. Three other Hesder soldiers, known to the Amirs, were part of a second part of the Amir’s conspiracy, intended to murder Palestinians: Arik Schwartz, Michael Epstein and Ohad Skornik. They were involved in stealing weapons and explosives from the IDF for this purpose. Schwartz’s father, Dr. Naftali Schwartz, was arrested while trying to get rid of explosives his son has stolen.
A seventh person, Margalit Har-Sheffi, was trying to get Yigal Amir halachaic permission to murder Rabin; the rabbi she turned to, Shlomo Aviner, refused to provide it and was so alarmed – turns out he received several such requests – he wrote a public article titled “The Prime Minister is not an Erev Rav.” [a Jewish leader working against Jewish interests] Har-Sheffi also provided Amir with information about the armory in her settlement, Beit El if memory serves, since he wanted to break in and steal arms. Har-Sheffi was convicted of knowing about Amir’s plans to murder Rabin and keeping silent – the only person in Israel’s history indicted and convicted of failing to report a conspiracy to commit a crime. She claimed she didn’t know he was in earnest, but couldn’t explain her visit to Aviner. She was sentenced for a year and received a hero’s welcome when she was released.
None of the members of the second part of the ring were ever indicted – or, as far as I know, even drummed out of the army. Nobody wanted to know too much. One gunmen could be described as a lone nut; six, coming from the same yeshivas, could not. So the public preferred not to look to deeply. People were seriously concerned about the possibility of a civil war at the time.
For documentation: Gurvitz can only link to one of his own texts. “Israeli history prior to 1997-1998 pretty much does not exist on the net. I had to look at newspaper archives from the period.” Max Blumenthal tells some of this story in Goliath.
Now more, from the video. Gurvitz describes the outer group of conspirators, and Har-Sheffi’s attempts to get a rabbinical blessing. At least one rabbi granted it, but the three she went to were never investigated.
As to the official indifference: “A group of three hesder guys is one thing. Six hesder guys, it’s a completely different… When it comes to Jewish terrorism, the Israeli establishment is afraid. It will act onlywhen it has to, it will not investigate deeply, it will let people go off.
I asked, but if they crack down, what would happen?
“At the time I think they were afraid… doing a crackdown on the entire network would have led to either more assassinations, which was possible, or a widespread civil war.
It’s been forgotten. No one speaks about it, it’s gone.”
Nobody wants to speak about rightwing Jewish terrorism, he adds. Today the pricetag attacks, for demands made upon settlers, are isolated incidents. But the pricetag campaign is financed by a subdivision of the Yesha council of settlers, and has been going on for eight years. The victims are mostly Palestinian, though pricetag has also targeted Israeli left. These attacks could become deadly, if there were a crackdown on the rightwing.
Well, that’s pretty telling.
Some Israelis are terrorists, and other Zionists and their supporters don’t want to speak about it or even recognize or REMEMBER the truth.
Nasty. It appears that the “rightwing” in in power. Sorta like right here at home.
(thanks, Phil.)
“QA seventh person, Margalit Har-Sheffi, was trying to get Yigal Amir halachaic permission to murder Rabin;”
Huh, I thought Israel was a democrisy.
Next thing will be Rabbis deciding who gets citizenship.
Not to forget that Israelis are also free to murder Americans with impunity: USS Liberty, Rachael Corrie, Furkan Dogan, Alex Odeh…
The FBI knows the names of the Israeli Jews who murdered Alex Odeh in Los Angeles, 1985. They live in a West Bank settlement but the Zionist juggernaut has stood in the way of their extradition for 28 years.
What wasn’t discussed, and what I would like to emphasize, is how unpopular Rabin was with US Jewish Zionists when it appeared that he was taking baby steps for peace. Make no mistake, US Jewish Zionists support Israel to the extent that it conforms to their desires for a militarized Jewish state. I seriously doubt that an Israel seeking peace and justice would receive much US Zionist support. Israel’s rightward drift, expansionary policies, and abuse of the Palestinians has been aided and abetted by US Zionist Jews. Below is a comment I made several months ago to that effect.
“Why you and other Mondoweissers tend to belittle US Zionist influence on Israel is a bit of a mystery. The notion that the people who effectively lobby on Israel’s behalf and fund settlements, think tanks, birthright tours and campaign funding have little or no influence on Israeli policy is illogical. Everyone talks about the power of the Israel Lobby, which is based upon organization and money. A lukewarm Lobby ain’t going to be effective. Their opinions carry weight. Additionally, if American Jewish money is so effective buying US support for Israel, why would it not be equally effective influencing Israeli politicians? Why make a big to-do about Jewish Democratic campaign financing and ignore the 96.8% campaign financing Netanyahu got from foreign sources? https://mondoweiss.mystagingwebsite.com/2012/10/step-aside-sheldon-adelson-one-florida-family-responsible-for-half-of-netanyahu-campaign-contributions.html It is virtually inconceivable that this type of support would be provided unless those providing it approved of Israel’s expansionist, militaristic policies and actions. How much US Zionist funding is the Israeli peace camp getting? He who pays the piper doesn’t have to call the tune. Successful pipers share their patron’s taste in music and automatically play mutually pleasing music.”
https://mondoweiss.mystagingwebsite.com/2013/05/fayyad-warns-leftovers.html#comment-561055
/We all know that Yigal Amir killed Rabin. But we don’t know much about the broader conspiracy/
Strange i don’t seem to see any broader conspiracy here .
Nothing most Israelis don;t know already.
Har Shefi was a famous case in which in the opinion of many people
she was wrongly convicted in shaky case only because of the public outrage for the murder of Rabin and the hunger for “blood” so to speak.
The three guys Gurvitz mentioned had no involvement in the Rabin murder,(which he admits)
or they would have been arrested and probably convicted as well Har Shefi is a good example as to why.
for some reason Gurvitz does not mention another important name if you want to talk conspiracies around Rabin’s murder.
Avishay Raviv code name “Shampania” an agent (a provocateur) in the Jewish department of Shin Bet that knew Igal Amir and his brother and was tried
and acquitted for the same crime Har Shefi was convicted.