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Former Mossad director Meir Dagan dies of cancer at 71

Israel mourns the loss of one of its courageous leaders who dedicated his life to ensure the that Holocaust could never happen again.

By: Aryeh Savir, World Israel News

Former Mossad director Meir Dagan died Wednesday night at the age of 71 after battling cancer.

“Mossad Director Yossi Cohen and Mossad branch heads and employees are deeply saddened and express their condolences to the Dagan family,” the Mossad said in a statement.

Dagan, the son of Holocaust survivors, as survived by three children and grandchildren.

Dagan is known by the Israeli public as a courageous military leader and a shrewd spy chief who transformed Israel’s spy agency and prepared it for the challenges of the 21st century.

Major General (reserves) Dagan was the 10th director of the Mossad and led it from 2002–2011.

Dagan was born Meir Hubermann in 1945, in the city Kherson, Ukraine, in a train fright car.

In 1950, he immigrated to Israel with his family.

Dagan enlisted in the IDF in 1963, and served in the paratrooper brigade. During the Six Day War, he served as a paratrooper company commander and fought in Sinai.

In 1970, General of the Southern Command Ariel Sharon tasked Dagan with establishing the Rimon Special Unit, which was responsible for eliminating terrorism in the Gaza Strip in the 1970’s.

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During Operation Peace of the Galilee (the First Lebanon War), he served in the armored corps as commander of the Barak brigade. Dagan was later appointed commander of the South Lebanon region and subsequently served in several key military positions.

Dagan was injured twice during his military service. He retired from the IDF in 1995, receiving the Medal of Courage for an operation he commanded in Gaza in 1971 during which he almost single-handedly overpowered a senior terrorist threatening him with a live grenade.

In 1996, Prime Minister Shimon Peres appointed him to the Counter-Terrorism Bureau, which he later led. In the late 1990’s, he joined the IDF General Staff, headed the Operations Section, and served as a special adviser to the Chief of Staff.

In 2002, Prime Minister Sharon appointed Dagan Director of the Mossad. As director, Dagan emphasized contending with the threat of countries in the region arming themselves with non-conventional weapons, and contending with terror against Jewish and Israeli targets around the world. He changed the structure of the Mossad to adapt it to the goals he set

Dagan was deeply affected by the tragedy of the Holocaust experienced by his family and the Jewish People, and this was an important factor in how he viewed the goals of the Mossad in contending with threats and defending the State of Israel.

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Dagan served as Mossad Director under Prime Ministers Ariel Sharon, Ehud Olmert, and Benjamin Netanyahu. His term was extended several times, and he retired in early 2011.

After retiring from the Mossad, Dagan turned to business.

In 2011, he was awarded the Chaim Herzog Award for unique contribution to the State of Israel, and the Moskowitz Prize for activity to realize Zionism.

He was battling with health issues for the past few years, and finally succumbed to the illness.

Netanyahu lauded him as “a daring warrior and commander,” who made “a substantial contribution” to Israel’s security.

Dagan was known to keep a photo of his grandfather as he was being humiliated by the Nazis shortly before they murdered him, on his desk. “Meir was determined to ensure that the Jewish People would never again be powerless and defenseless, and therefore dedicated his life to secure Israel’s force,” Netanyahu stated Thursday.