Victor Ostrovsky. - The other side of deception: a rogue agent exposes the Mossads secret agenda /

THE OTHER SIDE OF DECEPTION. Copyright 1994 by VicTor Ostrovsky. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may he used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the ease of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information, address HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 10 Fast 53rd Street. New York, NY 10022.

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FIRST EDITION

Designed by George ]. McKean

Insert design by Barham Dupree Knowles

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Ostrovsky, Victor.

The other side of deception : a rogue agent exposes the Mossads secret agenda / by Victor Ostrovsky. p. cm.

ISBN: 0-06-017635-0

1. Ostrovsky, Victor. 2. Intelligence officersIsraelBiography. 3. Israel. Mosad le-modi in ve-tafkidim meyuhadimBiography. 4. Espionage, Israeli. I. Title. UB271.1820846 1994

3 27.125694'09 2dc20

[B] 94-30942

To Bella with love

There are many friends and ex-colleagues Id like to thank, but owing to the nature of the intelligence world, they must remain anonymous.

I would, however, like to thank my agent, Tim Hays, whose belief in this project helped bring it to publication against so many protests, and my editor, Rick Horgan, an open-minded, diligent fellow whose sharp eye was a blessing. A final word of thanks goes to Harper-Collins publisher Jack McKeown and his staff, Judy Tashbook, Kathy Saypole, Chris McLaughlin, and Mary OShaughnessy.

Victor Ostrovsky

I wrote this book to make known the truth about my journey. I have no doubt that there are those who would prefer that their account of the events be the record and who will do all in their power to make it so.

Because of the complexity of the subject matter, I decided that a book was the most appropriate medium through which to convey the facts. I also decided to present the material in more or less chronological order.

Although its not usual for members of the intelligence services to keep written notes or records, I had kept some in order to carry out operational assignments Id been given. Although they werent originally intended as such, these notes did provide a useful additional resource in writing the hook. Aside from these notes, Ive relied largely on my memory to reconstruct the events described here and have made every effort to ensure that inaccuracies are minimal. Given that my capacity for recall was one of the main reasons I was originally sought by the Mossad, I feel confident in saying that the book is accurate in alt but the most minor of details. All names in the book are real, with the exception of Dina, Rachel, Albert, David, Sarah, Rami, Edward, and Fadllal, which are aliases. Other names, such as those of active field operatives, are given by first name only to prevent those individuals from being exposed. Additionally, Ive arranged for the Mossad to receive a copy of the book just prior to publication to allow them to take whatever precautions they deem necessary. The intention of this book is not personal vendetta.

Most major events in this book have been covered extensively by the media, and articles on them are in the public record. Ive provided a partial list of such articles at the end of the book to enable those interested to pursue further research on particular subjects.

That being said, this book is a factual account of events as they happened to me.

Victor Ostrovsky

My paternal grandparents immigrated to Canada from Russia at the turn of the century. They settled with other immigrants in the small Saskatchewan town of Wakaw, where my grandfather, Aaron Ostrovsky, built up a successful retail business, only to lose it during the Great Depression. Subsequently, he moved the family to Edmonton, Alberta.

At about the same time that the Ostrovskys arrived in Canada, the Margolin familyEsther, Hayyim, and their baby, Rafaescaped the Russian pogroms and made their way to Palestine. They settled in Jerusalem and had two more children, Mira and Maza.

Sid Ostrovsky, the fifth of Aarons seven children, served a full tour of duty as an airman in a Canadian bomber squadron over Europe during World War II. After the war, he joined the fledgling military of the newly formed state of Israel.

There he met Mira Margolin, whod recently completed her tour of duty in the British army, fighting the Germans in North Africa.

The newlywed couple made their home in Edmonton, where, on November 28, 1949, I was born. My mother, who wasnt a typical housewife in any regard, found a job as a teacher in the Jewish school in Edmonton and left the chore of raising her child to my paternal grandmother, Bessie Ostrovsky.

I was fortunate in the grandparents fate had selected for me. My mother was what might be called a free spirit, a bohemian type. A graduate of the Israeli Haganah underground and the British military, shed dreamed of becoming an actress. Theatrical parts were few and far between, though, which left her an extremely frustrated person. My father, on the other hand, knew that he would one day reach his goal: the American dream of financial security and a quiet life. But the road was long and hard. The unbridgeable difference in character between my parents finally led them to separate. I was five at the time.

My mother took me back to Israel, where her parents, Hayyim and Esther Margolin, took on the job of looking after me. I remember fondly the small house on Ha-yod-daleth Street as a warm, loving home, full of books and long talks about the fulfillment of the Zionist dream and how it could be translated into everyday life.

Since Id shown an inclination for the arts, my grandparents introduced me to a painter by the name of Gilady, who was living in our neighborhood. He gave me a box of oil paints and some of his time, instructing me in the basics of perspective and the use of color. Giladys lessons were ones Id apply ever aftereven as my childhood hobby ripened into a midlife passion.

My early years were quiet. My mother would reappear from time to time like a swirling tornado, disappearing back into the blue sky just as fast. On one of her touchdowns, she decided that I would be better off in boarding school. All my grandmothers pleading was to no avail, and I wound up spending a year in a dreadful place called Hadasim, a boarding school in the center of Israel funded and supervised by Hadassah Wizo, a Jewish womens organization in Canada, I liked to think that, had the organization been fully aware of the schools strict, spartan quality and its penchant for putting the kids to work, they would have closed it.

They werent aware, thoughas far as I knewand by years end, Id taken the initiative and returned to my grandparents home. Shortly after, my self-confidence was lifted when I joined the Gadna youth brigades and attained second place in a countrywide shooting competition as a member of the Abu Kabir target shooting club headed by an old army major named Dan David.

During my high school years, I met Bella, and it was love at first sight. We spent every moment we could together; we enjoyed reading the same books, hiking, and talking about politics, and especially being with each other. At about the age of eighteen, we were recruited to the Israeli military. Bella was assigned to the ministry of defense, and I was sent to the military police.

After basic training, I completed a noncommissioned officers course, and then went on to an officers course, graduating as the youngest officer at the time in the Israeli Defense Force. I then graduated from the military police officers course and the special military law course, and followed that up with demolition and sniper training.