03 — DIRECTOR
Zvi Zamir
Zvi Zamir led the Mossad from 1968 to 1974. The encyclopedia records that his term spanned the War of Attrition, the 1972 Munich attack and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and that archival records show his direct engagement with the prewar warning problem, including the meeting with Ashraf Marwan.
Evidence Assessment
Tenure dates, the 1972 and 1973 events within his term, and the archival evidence of his prewar role.
The extent and value of Marwan's warning material remain contested in the historical literature.
Key Facts
- Role:
- Director of the Mossad
- Term:
- 1968–1974
- Predecessor:
- Meir Amit
- Successor:
- Yitzhak Hofi (1974)
- Period events:
- Munich attack (1972); Yom Kippur War (1973)
A term of crises
Zamir's term is recorded across the War of Attrition, the Munich attack in 1972 and the Yom Kippur War in October 1973. The encyclopedia links his leadership directly to the prewar warning problem that became the field's most studied failure.
The Ashraf Marwan meeting
Archival records show Zamir meeting Ashraf Marwan, the Egyptian official widely reported as a long-running source, in the period before the 1973 war. The meaning and value of Marwan's reporting remain the subject of scholarly dispute.
Liaison with Jordan
The A–Z records Zamir–Hussein contacts in 1973 as documented liaison tied to the warning problem — a rare example of high-level regional intelligence coordination entering the public record.
Related entries
More in Directors
Sources
- Mossad Encyclopedia director record
- A–Z preview: Zamir, Zvi and Zamir–Hussein contacts
- Field note: Five Turning Points