Ari Shamron

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Besides, I've always believed that a career free of controversy is not a proper career at all.

— Ari Shamron

— 'The Messenger'

Ari Shamron was the Memuneh, Hebrew for "The one in charge." He was Gabriel Allon's mentor.

Background

• Ari:
  • Was in Palestine with his parents in 1937; Arabs had killed his father.Template:BookChapRef
  • Thought about how his parents had stayed behind in Poland and sent him to Palestine to live with relatives.Template:BookChapRef
  • Was in Poland in 1936 and his parents decided to send him to Palestine while remaining behind with his two sisters.Template:BookChapRef
  • Immigrated to Palestine in 1935.Template:BookChapRef
• Shamron killed Asad al-Khalifa.
• He served in the Palmach. He joined the Office during the 1950s and, in April 1960, he captured Adolf Eichmann off a street in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
• Ari usually did not tell his agents everything he knew and often deliberately deceived them.

Key Events

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Following the assassination of an Israeli ambassador, Ari Shamron sought Gabriel Allon, who had worked for him in operation Wrath of God. Ari had deduced that the assassin was Tariq al-Hourani, who had murdered Gabriel's son and crippled Gabriel's wife for life. Ari had an asset any spymaster would dream of; he had a deep-cover agent]] in al-Hourani's network.

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Shamron used Julian Isherwood to convince Gabriel Allon to go to Switzerland to meet with Augustus Rolfe, who had specifically asked to speak to Gabriel. After Gabriel was arrested and interrogated, Shamron arranged for his release, partly by providing some intelligence to Swiss officials.

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Shamron went to Venice to tell Gabriel Allon that he was to visit Munich in the role of Benjamin Stern's half brother and ensure that there was no evidence of Stern's former affiliation with the Office among his belongings. He authorized Gabriel to discuss Benjamin with Peter Malone. After enduring a tirade from Lev Ahroni, Shamron went to King Saul Boulevard and reviewed two files then flew to Vienna to help Gabriel Allon in his battle against Crux Vera. He met with Pope Paul VII to tell him about the threat to his life. After the carnage in the Vatican, Shamron stayed by Gabriel as he began his recovery.

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Ari sent Uzi Navot to Italy to tell Gabriel Allon that he (Gabriel) was a target of the Sword of Allah. Sent Gabriel to Moscow to try to draw a response from whomever wanted to pass information to the Office.

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Ari met with Sergei Korovin.

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Uzi Navot had managed to exile Ari to his home in Tiberias. Shimon Pazner told Gabriel Allon that, when he last saw Shamron, Ari seemed tired. Nonetheless, when the operation began, Ari was there.

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Ari went to Gabriel Allon's house, told him that Graham Seymour had arrived in Jerusalem asking a favor, and told him that both he and Uzi Navot approved.

Trivia

• Polish by birth
• Was "devoutly secular"
• Wore a leather jacket with a mysterious tear. The origin of the tear was finally explained in Template:Char
• Smoked Turkish cigarettes which he lit with a Zippo lighter. When he was nervous, he continually turned the lighter in his hand, "Two turns to the right, two turns to the left."
• Was fond of saying "Kachol v'Lavan," meaning "Blue and White," the colors of the Israeli flag, meaning that he thought Israel should handle its problems by itself.
• Once recruited an agent inside Britain's MI6.Template:BookChapRef
• Married Gilah in April 1947.Template:BookChapRef

Alias

• Rudolf Heller in:
  • The Kill Artist
  • The English Assassin
  • A Death in Vienna
  • Other books

Commandments

Ari Shamron has some additional commandments:

Eleven: Thou shalt not get caught.

Twelve: We do not wave our guns around like gangsters and make idle threats. We draw our weapons in the field for one reason and one reason only.