Rise and kill first
Presents an assessment of Israel's state-sponsored assassination programs that evaluates the protective beliefs that are instituted into every Israeli citizen, the role of assassination in the state's history, and the ethical challenges of Israel's policies on targeted killings. "The first definitive history of the Mossad, Shin Bet, and the IDF's targeted killing programs, from the man hailed by David Remnick as "arguably [Israel's] best investigative reporter." The Talmud says: "If someone comes to kill you, rise up and kill him first." This instinct to take every measure, even the most aggressive, to defend the Jewish people is hardwired into Israel's DNA. From the very beginning of its statehood in 1948, protecting the nation from harm has been the responsibility of its intelligence community and armed services, and there is one weapon in their vast arsenal that they have relied upon to thwart the most serious threats: Targeted assassinations have been used countless times, on enemies large and small, sometimes in response to attacks against the Israeli people and sometimes preemptively. In this page-turning, eye-opening book, journalist and military analyst Ronen Bergman offers a riveting inside account of the targeted killing programs--their successes, their failures, and the moral and political price exacted on the men and women who approved and carried out the missions.
Stats for nerds
9recommend
17mentions
15people
2018–2026years
65% recommend35% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- The wonderful book "Rise and Kill First" is a history of Israeli assassinations, with their policy of going after the "head of the snake". There are some interesting sections on how Israel used assassination to inhibit missile programs in the Middle East, including Egypt. Its a pretty easy read despite being long.
- Assassination is sort of the mossad's thing. I highly recommend the book "Rise and Kill First" (by an Israeli journalist Ronen Bergman) who describes this approach to international relations as something approaching an addiction. He alleges they've assassinated more people than any country on earth since their founding in 1948 and lays out a very convincing picture (to the extent he can—there are moments when you can tell he would like to state things more baldly).
- There's a fascinating snippet relating to this in the book Rise and Kill First by the Israeli national security journalist Ronen Bergman. Apparently faking passports could take months, at least in 2010 for the Mossad. Traditionally the Mossad would call off operations if they didn't have enough fake passports, but the new director decided to cut corners and reuse passports. This contributed to one of their most humiliating failures.
- I don't know the answer to your question, but if you're interested in this topic I highly recommend Rise and Kill First by Ronen Bergman. Very well-sourced and readable account of Israeli spycraft.
- I highly recommend Ronen Bergman's account of the Israeli covert assasination programme: Rise and Kill First [0].
It's a very nuanced book, grappling with the moral issues of a single death now to avoid multiple deaths later, and the unintended consequences of these decisions.
- * Rise and Kill First: A history of Israel viewed through their Intelligence and targeted assassination programs. Interesting insights into the individuals and departments that shaped the country and in turn region. According to the author, the Israelis had scrambled jets on multiple occasions to shoot down public airliners thought to be carrying Yasser Arafat. This was only thwarted by individuals intentionally delaying the process. Includes insights into history of the internal debate over the legality and morality of killing other nations non-combatants, sometimes on their soil.
* The Outlaw Ocean: Journeys Across the Last Untamed Frontier: Collection of stories written for the New York Times by reporter Ian Urbina. Only a dozen or so miles off-shore there are no enforced laws. Floating armories, slavery, dumping pollution, over fishing, abortion. Interesting to think all that goes on in the ocean that never really enters the public conscious. [https://www.npr.org/2019/08/21/751707831/the-outlaw-ocean-a-...]
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