Shlomo Argov | |
|---|---|
שלמה ארגוב | |
 | |
| Israeli Ambassador tothe United Kingdom | |
| In office 1979–1982 | |
| Preceded by | Avraham Kidron |
| Succeeded by | Yehuda Avner |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1929-12-14)14 December 1929 |
| Died | 23 February 2003(2003-02-23) (aged 73) Jerusalem |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Diplomat |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | |
| Years of service | 1948–1950 |
| Battles/wars | |
Shlomo Argov (Hebrew:שלמה ארגוב; 14 December 1929 – 23 February 2003) was an Israeli diplomat. He was theIsraeli ambassador to the United Kingdom, whose attempted assassination led to the1982 Lebanon War.
Argov was born inJerusalem in 1929 to the Salomon family that had lived in Jerusalem for ten generations.[1] As a teenager, he joined thePalmach, the elite force of theHaganah. During the1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, he was wounded in theBattle of Safed. When Israel was established and the1948 Arab–Israeli War broke out, Argov joined theIsrael Defense Forces (IDF).
In 1950, he completed his military service and went to the United States to study, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree from theSchool of Foreign Service atGeorgetown University, Washington D.C., in 1952. While studying, he worked part-time at theIsraeli Embassy in Washington, where he met his future wife Hava. Afterwards, he went to study in the United Kingdom, and received an MA in international relations from theLondon School of Economics in 1955.[2]
Argov then returned to Israel, where he spent several years working in the Prime Minister's Office underDavid Ben-Gurion.[2]
In 1959, Argov joined theIsraeli Foreign Ministry, and was appointed consul-general inLagos,Nigeria; following that country's independence in 1960, he became ambassador.[3] He was later transferred to the Israeli Embassy inGhana, before joining the Israeli consulate inNew York City in 1962. In 1965, he became Deputy-Director of the American Desk at the Foreign Ministry, and was posted at the Israeli Embassy inWashington in 1968. From 1971 to 1974, he served as ambassador toMexico, and was appointed Deputy Director-General for Information of the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem when he returned. In 1977, he was appointed ambassador to theNetherlands, and served until 1979.[2][4]
In September 1979, he was appointed ambassador to the United Kingdom by Prime MinisterMenachem Begin. During his three years as ambassador, he "forcefully and articulately put forward Israel's cause to a generally hostile Foreign Office and media". He was highly admired byBritish Jews, and often visited Jewish communities.[2]
Argov had three children with his wife Hava: a son, Gideon, and two daughters, Yehudit and Edna. Hava died in May 2002.[2]
| Attempted assassination of Shlomo Argov | |
|---|---|
 A PM-63 Machine Pistol, similar to the one used in the assassination attempt | |
| Location | The Dorchester,London,United Kingdom |
| Date | 3 June 1982 |
| Target | Shlomo Argov |
Attack type | Political assassination, shooting |
| Weapon | PM-63 Machine pistol |
| Deaths | None |
| Injured | Shlomo Argov (critically injured) |
| Perpetrators |
|
On 3 June 1982, three men, Hussein Ghassan Said, Marwan al-Banna and Nawaf al-Rosan, approached Argov as he got into his car after a banquet at theDorchester Hotel inPark Lane, London.[5] There is another report stating the presence of a fourth man.[6] Armed with aPM-63 machine pistol, Hussein Ghassan Said shot Argov in the head.[7] Argov was not killed, but he was critically injured.[6] He was rushed to theNational Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, where he was transferred to a specialist unit and underwent emergency brain surgery. He remained in a coma for three months.[5]
The attempted assassins were members of theAbu Nidal Organization, a Palestinian splinter group which was hostile to thePLO. The attack was ordered by theIraqi Intelligence Service.[8][9][10] Following the attack, the assassins drove to the Iraqi embassy in London, where they deposited the weapon.[11]
Al-Banna wasAbu Nidal's cousin, Said was a Jordanian, and Al-Rosan was an Iraqi intelligence colonel. The gunman, Said, was shot by Argov's bodyguard and also sustained serious head injuries and, like Argov, survived.[12] The two uninjured assassins fled the scene but were arrested shortly afterwards in a London flat. It appeared that they were planning to kill Nabil Ramlawi, the PLO representative in London.[5]
The attackers were convicted, and sentenced to terms of imprisonment ranging from 30 to 35 years. Subsequently two became mentally ill, and were transferred to high security hospitals in the UK.[13] There was some speculation in Israel at the time that the British security services were aware of the plot.[14]Lord Alton of Liverpool failed to draw the government into commenting on the speculation when he raised the issue in theHouse of Lords.[15]
The attempt on Argov's life triggered the Israeli decision toinvade Lebanon three days later to rout Palestinian guerrilla bases.[5][16] This was intended by the Iraqi authorities, who calculated that an Israeli war in Lebanon would be detrimental to therival Ba'athist government inSyria—whether Syria intervened on behalf of the Palestinians or not.[17] Israel invaded Lebanon on 6 June. The war saw the expulsion of thePalestine Liberation Organization from Lebanon, although the would-be assassins were not members of the PLO, and their leader,Abu Nidal, had even been sentenced to deathin absentia by a PLO court.[18]
After being in a coma for three months, Argov regained consciousness, and was returned to Israel. There, he was placed in the rehabilitation ward atHadassah Hospital inJerusalem as a permanent patient.[5][19] Though paralysed, he initially remained lucid and had newspaper headlines read to him for fifteen minutes at a time. He became devastated when he realised the full extent of his condition. After about three years, he was never fully conscious, and he eventually went blind.[20]
Argov was deeply distressed that the attack on him had provoked the1982 Lebanon War. In 1983, he dictated to a friend the following statement from his bed in Hadassah Hospital. The statement was later passed on to theHaaretz newspaper: "If those who planned the war had also foreseen the scope of the adventure, they would have spared the lives of hundreds of our best sons ... They brought no salvation ... Israel should go to war only when there is no alternative. Our soldiers should never go to war unless it is vital for survival. We are tired of wars. The nation wants peace."[20]
Argov died at Hadassah Hospital in 2003, aged 73, from the injuries inflicted in the attack.[5][21] He had been paralysed and in permanent hospital care for 21 years.[22]
Ha'aretz reported that UK intelligence may have had advance notice of the June 1982 assassination of Israeli Ambassador to the UK Shlomo Argov, which was used as a pretext by Israel for launching its invasion of Lebanon three days later. Ronald Waldron, a British intelligence agent who reportedly infiltrated Palestinian terrorist organizations, toldHa'aretz that he had passed on detailed information about the assassination plot to his superiors.
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| People | |
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