FBI Files Reveal Secret Surveillance of Israelis

Newly released FBI documents, declassified after over 12 years of legal battles, detail surveillance and investigations targeting Israeli officials, scientists, and journalists. The approximately 1,700 pages cover early investigations into suspected leaks of U.S. government documents to Zionist entities, as well as the monitoring of Israeli diplomats and officials. Among those scrutinized were Chaim Herzog, who later became Israel's president, and Gideon Rafael, a former senior diplomat. The files also mention surveillance of scientist Alexander Cohen, who later headed the Biological Institute in Ness Ziona, and information gathering on journalists and individuals linked to Zionist organizations in the U.S. The FBI also tracked El Al flights, seeking to develop an informant within the airline and examining the transport of Israeli diplomatic mail through American airports. One notable incident involved 10 kilograms of gold seized from a traveler in Amsterdam in 1950, who intended to transport it to Israel via Paris. Then-FBI Director Edgar Hoover ordered an investigation into the traveler's identity and potential links to Israeli intelligence. The documents were released under the Freedom of Information Act, with the process beginning in June 2026 and concluding in October, though some sections and names remain redacted. The files highlight U.S. suspicions regarding Israeli intelligence activities in America during the nation's early decades, but do not prove wrongdoing by all individuals named, and some investigations did not result in charges or convictions.