ISRAELI-U.S. RELATIONS

Generally

Ben-Menashe, Ari. Profits of War: Inside the Secret U.S.-Israeli Arms Network. Lanham, MD: Sheridan Square Press, 1992.

Surveillant 3.1 notes that this is more "October Surprise theory." Craig Unger, "The Trouble with Ari," Village Voice, 7 Jul. 1992, 33-39, makes a negative judgment as to Ben-Menashe's truthfulness. On the other hand, NameBase seems to buy into Ben-Menashe's accusations, even the more outrageous ones (such as, "In 1981 Robert Gates helped him with his suitcase containing $56 million").

Cockburn, Andrew, and Leslie Cockburn. Dangerous Liaison: The Inside Story of the U.S.-Israeli Covert Relationship. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. New York: HarperPerennial, 1992. [pb.]

Surveillant 1.6 sees Dangerous Liaison as a "tale of cooperation between the Pentagon, CIA, and Israel's Mossad and Shin Bet from post-WWII contacts with James Angleton to the present crisis in the Gulf." Surveillant 2.4 adds that "[r]ecent accounts of Israeli sales of arms to India add further credibility to this work." Rich, FILS 12.3, notes that the 1992 edition has a "few changes." This is an "easily read and enjoyable survey of the complex story of American and Israeli covert relationships." However, there are "occasionally lapses into baited-breath journalism." The "chapter on [Michael] Harari ... is the best in the book."

To Stork, Middle East Journal 46.2, the book is "an extensive, well-researched, and accessible account that helps to demystify the relationship at a moment when it may be undergoing significant stress." NameBase says that Dangerous Liaison "is especially helpful in understanding the influence of the Israeli arms industry, which operates on a revolving-door basis with various elements of Israel's intelligence community and has been all too eager to supply many of the world's tyrants." This book is "[l]ess a diplomatic history than a study of the dark underside of the U.S.-Israeli relationship."

Goldman, Adam, and Matt Apuzzo. "US Sees Israel, Tight Mideast Ally, as Spy Threat." Associated Press, 28 Jul 2012. [http://www.ap.org]

"Despite inarguable ties between the U.S. and its closest ally in the Middle East and despite statements from U.S. politicians trumpeting the friendship, U.S. national security officials consider Israel to be, at times, a frustrating ally and a genuine counterintelligence threat.... The CIA considers Israel its No. 1 counterintelligence threat in the agency's Near East Division,... according to current and former officials."

Green, Stephen. Taking Sides: America's Secret Relations With a Militant Israel. New York: Morrow, 1984.

Petersen notes that Green is "critical of U.S. and U.S. intelligence support for Israel since 1948." Similarly, NameBase points to the author's conclusion that "were it not for U.S. policies that favored the militarists within Israel, particularly from 1964 to 1967, the Palestinian problem might have been solved."

Hersh, Seymour M. The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy. New York: Random House, 1991. The Samson Option: Israel, America and the Bomb. London: Faber & Faber, 1992. [pb] The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy. With new Afterword. New York: Vintage, 1993. [pb]

According to Surveillant 2.2, the book has, in part, been "vigorously disputed.... [O]ne of the key sources, Israeli exile Ari Ben-Menashe, is a very controversial figure." Similar questions are raised by Bates, NIPQ 8.4, who finds that the book's "sourcing is vague." Bates adds, however, that The Samson Option is "good reading that weaves a plausible tale." On the other hand, Beres, IJI&C 10.1/83/fn. 9, finds The Samson Option to be "altogether lacking in serious scholarly merit."

To Beckman, America, 19 Sep. 1992, The Samson Option is "enlightening and provocative." Nonetheless, Hersh "lacks evidence" for his claim that the Soviet Union was the primary target of Israeli nuclear weapons. Doron, IJI&C 6.1, argues that Hersh has been "unable to establish with complete credibility whether or not Israel actually has nuclear capability."

Quandt, WPNWE, 2-8 Dec. 1991, also finds it "difficult to believe that Israel has developed a so-called 'counterforce' capability against the Soviets [that is, the capability to hit Soviet military targets]. It makes little sense militarily, in contrast to a 'city-busting' capability." In a number of instances, Hersh makes a "questionable use of sources," and further "weakens his impressive narrative by leaving a trail of minor errors." If nothing else, however, Hersh has performed a service by making available more information on a difficult topic.

Kahana, Ephraim. "Mossad-CIA Cooperation." International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 14, no. 3 (Fall 2001): 409-420.

As the author admits, there is little open-source information on his subject. Hence, the article is filled out with instances where there was a lack of "cooperation": such as, Israel's use of NUMEC to obtain enriched uranium, the attack on the Liberty, and the Pollard fiasco.

Loftus, John, and Mark Aarons. The Secret War Against the Jews: How Western Espionage Betrayed the Jewish People. New York: St. Martin's, 1994.

According to Surveillant 4.2, this allegation-filled book has a "consistent theme: that the White House and MI6 have repeatedly run illegal programs, hidden from both CIA and Congress, and then used the Jews as scapegoats." A NameBase reviewer opines that "the 'war against the Jews' seems to be a journalistic 'hook' that ties together chapters stuffed with new material on political corruption in U.S. and British intelligence." Although the authors provide 115 pages of end notes, many of their sources requested anonymity. In a true pot-and-kettle situation, McGehee, CIABASE January 1995 Update Report, states that the "authors are far too opinionated and rhetorical to be considered reliable."

Rodman, IJI&C 7.4, calls this book a "massive [658 pages] (and massively-documented) volume." The authors open with the collaboration between Jack Philby and Ibn Saud. The authors make some "explosive claims," including that James Angleton was an "Israeli mole." The authors believe that the Israeli attack on the Liberty was deliberate, but they also "believe that it was entirely justified." They argue that the Liberty was passing Israeli order of battle to the Egyptians, but they fail "to present incontrovertible evidence to substantiate their version of the incident." However, despite its flaws, "this book deserves to be taken seriously."

Fishel, IJI&C 8.3, takes exception to Rodman's statement that the "most credible" explanation of the attack on the USS Liberty is that it was an "accident": "Israel's assault on the Liberty was as accidental as Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor." Fishel calls Loftus and Aarons' book, "a collection of preposterous and demonstrably false theories and allegations. With regard to the Liberty attack, the only significant detail they get right is that it was deliberate." Rodman responds in IJI&C 9.1 by expressing and explaining his continuing skepticism with regard to "the claim that the Israelis knowingly attacked an American ship."

Melman, Yossi, and Dan Raviv. Friends in Deed: Inside the U.S.-Israel Alliance. New York: Hyperion, 1994.

Clark comment: Although the dust jacket lists Dan Raviv first of the two authors, all other indicators from the cover on list Yossi Melman first and he is, therefore, shown as the first author here. According to the authors, the U.S.-Israeli alliance "is a broad relationship, extending from international politics to military affairs, from intelligence cooperation to financial ties." (p. xv) There are references to intelligence-related activities throughout the book, but Chapters 4, 7, and 15 focus on such issues. Surveillant 4.4/5 says that the authors "uncover and document many revelations about the secret side of the alliance, including new details of the intimacy between intelligence networks."

Segev, Samuel. Tr., Haim Watzman. Iranian Triangle: The Untold Story of Israel's Role in the Iran-Contra Affair. New York: Free Press, 1988.

Butterfield, New York Times, 27 Nov. 1988, says Segev provides "the most detailed account so far of the factionalism in Teheran." This book offers "some important historical nuggets," but "should be read with caution." This work leads Bensky, Los Angeles Times, 18 Dec. 1988," to conclude that it is too soon to expect the full story" of Iran-Contra to emerge. However, the author's "recounting of intergovernmental relations" makes clear that, dating from the Eisenhower years, "'the U.S., Israel and Iran worked together" in an "unofficial alliance aimed at halting the Soviet Union's expansion in the Middle East and weakening its friends in the Arab world.'"

Return to Israeli-U.S. Relations Table of Contents