Ben-Eliezer and Mubarak in 2005

The infamous hero of Shaked affair, Ben-Eliezer passed away

On August 28, news came from Tel Aviv that former minister of defense and deputy prime minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer had passed away at a medical center. The 80-years-old Israeli official was suffering from kidney disease.

A screen shot from Rush Shaked
A screen shot from Rush Shaked

The Iraqi-born Israeli official gained hate in Egypt when Israeli war documentary “The Shaked spirit” or “Rush Shaked” was aired on an Israeli TV channel in March 2007, including testimonies of military veterans in the Shaked unit he headed in 1967 on how they killed 250 Egyptian POWs near Egyptian-Palestinian borders.

In an alleged U.S confidential cable sent from the U.S embassy in Cairo to Washington on 7 March 2007, it was detailed how Ben-Eliezer cancelled his visit to Egypt over the anger of the government of Egypt as well the anger of media.

Interestingly, according to Ben-Eliezer’s Wikipedia page, the Egyptian General Intelligence service warned him of coming to Egypt during that time otherwise he could be arrested.

The public anger during then in Cairo forced the Egyptian People’s assembly summoned the minister of foreign affairs then Ahmed El-Ghait to investigate the matter.

The Egyptian ministry opened an investigation into the documentary vowing to take strong steps if proven the Israeli guilt. It also released the transcript of the documentary in Arabic

The statements of the videos were clear that Egyptian POWs were killed despite they were not holding any arms and they were hiding according to the transcript released by the Egyptian ministry of foreign affairs to the Egyptian media in March.

In 2008, Ahmed El-Ghait stated that the investigation was still open till Israel would finish its investigation.

It is unclear to know the fate of the Egyptian investigations into the Rush Shaked documentary but Israel already made it clear that its veterans did not commit anything wrong as usual.

The Israeli ministry of foreign issued a statement in Arabic on March 7,2007 claiming that video stated those late Egyptian military were actually fighting combatants who had a battle and “both sides had battles and victims during that war”!!

The former Israeli minister of defense was proud of his very close friendship to Egypt’s ousted dictator and convicted ex-president Mohamed Hosni Mubarak, a thing which brought to him criticism sometimes in Israeli media ironically after 2011.

Binyamin Ben-Eliezer stated in August 2011 that he and current Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu offered political asylum to Mubarak and his family following his ouster but he declined because “he was patriot”.

Mubarak and Ben-Eliezer in Sharm El-Sheikh
Mubarak and Ben-Eliezer in Sharm El-Sheikh in January 2012. “Getty Images”

As a minister of infrastructure, Ben-Eliezer witnessed along with Mubarak in June 2005 the signing of a memorandum of understanding for supplying Israel with Egyptian national gas.

Mubarak’s long-time friend, Hussein Salem was the main Egyptian partner in this controversial deal.

Ben-Eliezer had a very legacy when it comes to Egypt and its POWs as Lebanon and its invasion and history won’t forget that.

History will also remember how the Mubarak’s administration had an opportunity to restore back some of the rights of the Egyptian POWs but it gave it up.

When people remembered the Egyptian POWs once again in Tiran

It has been awhile , it has been a lot of time. Just as one would think that the case of the Egyptian POWs is fading away with all what is going in Egypt from political changes, the case returns back in the most unexpected way.

In the past two months, there has been a huge controversy about the Egyptian Saudi deal to redraw the maritime borders. According to that deal , the Egyptian government gave up Tiran and Sanafir isles in Tiran strait to Saudi Arabia.

There has been a lot of debate as you may have known. Many Egyptians as well political figures, powers and parties rejected the deal. The deal is being disputed in front of the Administrative court and it is expected to be discussed by the Egyptian House of Representatives according to Constitution.

Now as there is a huge debate currently in Egypt about whether the two Red Sea isles are Egyptians of not, people began to share maps, legal documents and testimonies on how Egyptian soldiers were stationed on those two islands and that those soldiers did not fight for a foreign territory.

Yes , Egyptian soldiers were stationed on those two islands and according to a photo that had been found in Getty Archives those Egyptian soldiers were captured by Israeli forces at Tiran Isle in June 1967.  Read More

A footage from Israel as a reminder

Do you remember Israeli “This is us” documentary which included a very rare footage for Egyptian POWs mistreated during their capture by IAF in Al Arish in June 1967 !?

In 2012 we had only 2 minutes only from that documentary directed by Eric Bernstein , well there are more two extra minutes from the same documentary.


The extra minutes show the humiliation of the Egyptian POWs in 1967 forced to be in their underwear.It is very sad footage as well important one.It was filmed at the same location I believe that photo was taken

Egyptian POWs in Al Arish June 1967
Egyptian POWs in Al Arish June 1967

 

The Egyptian #POWs in #1973 : The Thunderbolt POWs Massacre

On the 40th anniversary of the October 1973 war “Yom Kippur war” You will find it rare that Egyptian or Israeli media would speak about what happened to Egyptian POWs during that war. The media’s focus especially in Egypt is about the Israeli POWs and the good treatment they received .

On the other side very few sources speak about what happened during that war from crimes and violations committed by the Israeli Defense army. Group 73 Historians, a group of army veterans who chronicle independently the history of the wars against Israel revealed a horrifying incident which they named “The Thunderbolt Forces Massacre”.

The incident is based upon the testimony of former major general Magdy Shehata’s memories.

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This is What the “IDF1967” Twitter Account Forgot To Tell the World About ?? “Graphic”

In this year’s six days war anniversary the Israeli Defense Army launched a twitter account “@IDF1967” in Hebrew to recount the events of the what happened in the war that changed the Middle East forever.

This account did not mention the documented war crimes committed by the IDF against the Egyptian POWs as well Egyptian citizens and Arab citizens in general during the war.

It neglected the fact that thousands of civilians in the Suez cities canal were killed in the air strikes of the IAF where the internationally banned Napalm bombs were used. Thousands of Egyptians were forced to be displaced.

Thousands of Egyptians were forced to be displaced.

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Morsi’s Administration , The #MB And The #POWs File

It is June 2013 and amazingly as I have waited the elected President in Egypt Dr. Mohamed Morsi to open the file of the Egyptian POWs in the anniversary of the six days war but instead there was nothing. Complete silence from the new administration.

The anniversary of the Six days war came and Egyptians found out the members of the Muslim brotherhood which the president belongs to were gloating over the defeat caused by their nemesis Nasser !!

I cannot ignore this opportunity without congratulating the Nasserites with their defeat Happy Six day war anniversary dear Nasserites and you are defeated , the leadership is for those who deserve the leadership Gentlemen !!

This was the tweet of Nour El Din Abdel Hafiz, the star TV host of Misr 25 TV channel. Misr 25 TV channel is owned by the Muslim brotherhood.

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Egyptian POWs in 1967

It did not stop at this , the MB members and supporters kept posting the Egyptian soldiers’ humiliating photos while they were in the IDF capture to tease the Nasserites on social media websites with no respect to all those who were killed and tortured during their torture.

The members of the Muslim brotherhood were actually gloating over the defeat of the Arab people and the death of thousands on 5 June 1967. In 2007 the MB used to speak frequently about “Shaked Affair” but now the whole thing is forgotten.I remember that Ikhwan Online used to follow carefully the case of the Egyptian POWs of 1956 and 1967.

The MB used to criticized Mubarak and his regime for neglecting the POWs file and unfortunately I do not see any difference in time of President Morsi.

Another proof from #Israel about crimes against Egyptian #POWs

Israeli Website “Walla” published last Friday “12/10/2012” footage from a documentary filmed in June 1967 showing how the Egyptian POWs from soldiers and officers were abused by the IDF in Al Arish airport prison camp. It is horrible 2 minutes footage , this was just the tip of the ice-berg for real.

This footage shows clear abuse to the Egyptian soldiers and officers captured during the 1967 war. It is humiliating by all measures. It was shot on 8 mm film by Reuven Sela , an amateur photographer who was serving as reservist in the Israeli Air forces “IAF”

This footage is from a documentary called “This is us” that is directed by Eric Bernstein and produced by Eliav Liliti , it depends mainly on the footage filmed by amateurs in Israel on 8 mm cameras. The full documentary will be screened in Tel Aviv this week.

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Remembering the 6th

Today is the anniversary of the 6th of October 1973 war , today we remember all our fallen soldiers and officers as well our POWs whether in 1967 or in 1973.

Today we also remember the treatment of Israeli POWs in Egypt and how it is quite different to what our Egyptian POWs faced in 1956 and 1967.

In this occasion , I would like to share with you a rare Egyptian documentary directed by late famous director Shady Abdel Salam in 1975 about the war and the Egyptian soldiers. The documentary in Arabic includes the testimonies of Egyptian soldiers including those who had been captured by Israeli forces.

On the other hand this year we find some Israeli veteran returning back the military ID of Egyptian soldier which he took in 1973 during the war , it was a trophy of war I believe. There are not clear details about how he got it. According to Israeli press , the Israeli veteran felt sorry and believed it should return to the family of that late solider who was called “Abdel Hamid Abdel Hamid Ibrahim” after 39 years.

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The POWs case is back

This is my first post in 2011 . It is my first post after the Jan25th Revolution in Egypt , it is my first post after ousting Hosni Mubarak , the same man who ignored for 30 years the rights of our Egyptian POWs.

I wanted to write here during the revolution to show to the whole world how the former ousted president had no friend in the world  except the same man who killed our POWs in 1967 : Binyamin Ben Eliezer !! During the climax of the revolution last February almost all the leaders of the world did not talk to Mubarak and he did not dare to call them except Ben Eliezer !!

Mubarak and Ben Elizar
Old buddies !!

It is enough that his last call before stepping down was to Ben Eliezer !! Some will not like what I will say but how come Mubarak was an officer in the Egyptian army and headed our air forces once upon time !! Ben Eliezer killed our unarmed Egyptian POWs in 1967 and he does not deny it for God sake yet they seemed to be close friends to the level that Mubarak spoke to Ben Eliezer for 20 minutes in his last international call as a president !!

Anyhow Ben Eliezer can feel very sad for Mubarak but he has to be worried now because the Egyptian POWs case seemed to be revived again by the Egyptian revolution.

The Egyptian Arabic socialist party has demanded PM Sharaf and the supreme council of armed forces to implement the administrative court rule to demand a UN and security council investigation concerning the Israeli war crimes against our POWs during the Suez war , the six days war and 1973 war.

FM Nabil El-Araby has announced that Egypt is going to join the ICC at last , this great news means we can sue Israel in front of the ICC.

Despite we are busy in our revolution that has not finished yet , we have forgotten the rights of our fallen soldiers , Ben Eliezer should be very worried.