Adolf to Azov

One of Israel’s most famous spies is a man by the name of Eli Cohen. Cohen’s main focus as a spy was to infiltrate the Syrian government and commit espionage on behalf of Israel. However, while modern film and documentary make Eli Cohen to look like a James Bond figure, in truth his operation was much more similar to that of Jefferey Epstein’s.

Originally Eli worked as a counter-intelligence analyst and a translator for the IDF, but this was too boring for him. He applied to work at the Mossad but was rejected. Taking this as an insult, Eli Cohen left the IDF and worked a quiet life as a filing clerk at an insurance company for two years after. The Mossad was looking for someone to conduct operation in Syria, but none of their recruitments seemed to be a good fit. This made the Mossad go through a list of old recruits in an effort to find someone more suitable. This is where they located Eli’s name.

For the next two weeks Eli Cohen was placed under surveillance, before the Mossad approached him. After that he was given 6 months of Espionage training, and sent to Buenos Aires, just a year after the arrest of Adolf Eichman.

From Buenos Aires Eli Cohen acted under a fake name “Kamel Amin Thabet.” He built his cover as a successful Syrian businessman who wanted to return home. In South America he made many connections which he would use later. When he moved back to Syria, he lived in an apartment located in an upscale part of Damascus. His apartment building was located within the vicinity of embassies and other government buildings.

During his time, he had trees planted in the location of soldiers’ positions, so they would be later easier to target by the IDF during the Six-Day War. He also uncovered many covert plans, in defensive lines, and how the military operated. He also uncovered a plan to divert the Jordan river away from Israel, so they wouldn’t have access to water in the desert.

But he had another sort of business he ran, which was much more similar to Epstein’s. At his apartment he would throw lavish parties, much like Jeffery Epstein did on his island. It’s unknown what went on at these parties, but there was plenty of women and liquor. Cohen would act like a drunk but at the same time he paid close attention to conversation in an effort to collect information on them. Many times, he would lend money, and act friendly to people, just to gain their trust. Through these parties Eli Cohen might have been able to build a network on blind trust and blackmail, much like what Epstein did.

After a coup d’état in 1963, Syria appointed Colonel Ahmed Suidani to lead the Syrian intelligence services. Sudiani disliked Cohen because he had ties to the old party, but Cohen was still able to operate undercover for the next two years. However, the soviet provided the Syrians with radio tracking equipment which they were able to use to locate Cohen mid transmission, in 1965.

He was tried and sentence to death. Even though Eli Cohen was hanged May 18, 1965, his legacy still lives on. With similarities with both Epstein and Cohen, it’s hard to say if there are more, or if these are just the ones who got caught.