Yolande Harmer (born Yolande Gabbai, ; 1913–1959) was an Israeli intelligence officer who operated in

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

in 1948. She was recruited due to her connections in elite and royal circles and she has been described as "Israel's Mata Hari".

Biography

Yolande Gabai (later Harmer and Har-Mor) was born in

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

, Egypt, to a Turkish-

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

mother. She was married three times, the first at the age of 17. Her first husband was called Jacques de Botton. She divorced him after a few years of marriage - having had a son with him, Gilbert de Botton.

Espionage career

Harmer was recruited by

Moshe Sharett Moshe Sharett (; born Moshe Chertok (); 15 October 1894 – 7 July 1965) was the second prime minister of Israel and the country’s first foreign minister. He signed the Israeli Declaration of Independence and was a principal negotiator in th ...

, secretary of the Jewish Agency political department, when he visited Egypt in 1945 or 1946. They met at a cocktail party. At the time Harmer was working as a journalist and accepted in the highest circles of Egypt society. She was able to gather intelligence in King Farouk's court in

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

. She made many other important contacts including senior editors of '' Al-Ahram'', the most widely circulating

ian daily newspaper, Tak ed-Din as-Sulh, the chief assistant of Abdul Rahman Hassan Azzam, and Mahmoud Mahlouf, son of the Grand Mufti of Cairo. When the Swedish

envoy Envoy or Envoys may refer to: Diplomacy * Diplomacy, in general * Envoy (title) * Special envoy, a type of Diplomatic rank#Special envoy, diplomatic rank Brands *Airspeed Envoy, a 1930s British light transport aircraft *Envoy (automobile), an au ...

to Egypt,

Widar Bagge Widar Bagge (30 April 1886 – 18 April 1970) was a Sweden, Swedish diplomat. Early life Bagge was born on 30 April 1886 in , Lilla Edet Municipality, Sweden, the son of wholesaler John Bagge and his wife Fredrika (née Corin). He received a Cand ...

, fell in love with her, she swayed him to sympathize with the

Zionist Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

struggle for self-determination and the freedom of the Jewish people. Eli Peleg, a

Yishuv The Yishuv (), HaYishuv Ha'ivri (), or HaYishuv HaYehudi Be'Eretz Yisra'el () was the community of Jews residing in Palestine prior to the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. The term came into use in the 1880s, when there were about 2 ...

emissary in Cairo, reported Harmer's success with Bagge: "Several months ago he was indifferent to our cause, but today he is an enthusiastic Zionist." The assassination of

Folke Bernadotte Folke Bernadotte, Count of Wisborg (2 January 1895 – 17 September 1948) was a Swedish nobleman and diplomat. In World War II, he negotiated the release of about 450 Danish Jews and 30,550 non-Jewish prisoners of many nations from the Nazi ...

in September 1948, however, made Bagge's enthusiasm cool again. Harmer provided the Yishuv with important strategic information, including the texts of resolutions adopted by the

Arab League The Arab League (, ' ), officially the League of Arab States (, '), is a regional organization in the Arab world. The Arab League was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945, initially with seven members: Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt, Kingdom of Iraq, ...

in 1947 and 1948 declaring that they "will sacrifice all the political and economic interest of the Arab world in order to save Arab Palestine." She also uncovered Arab military plans for the end of the British Mandate for Palestine. including the creation of Kaukji's

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

in late 1947. By penetrating the US Embassy, she was able to supply information on the number of

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

n and

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

n troops fighting the Arabs in Palestine. Yolande H

However, delivering the information she gathered was problematic: She had a radio transmitter, but no-one to operate it for her. She sent the information using mail services via Europe or the United States, but precious time was often lost. During her work in Egypt she often risked not only her own life, but the life of her son. In July 1948, Harmer was arrested. In August, after falling ill in jail, she was released and deported. She went to Paris where she worked for the Middle East Department of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, becoming a key figure in that department by 1949. During her work in Paris she maintained her Egyptian contacts, continuing to provide Israel with valuable information. In 1950 she worked in Madrid. Harmer died of cancer in Jerusalem in 1959.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harmer, Yolande 1959 deaths 1913 births 20th-century Egyptian Jews Egyptian people of Israeli descent Israeli people of Turkish-Jewish descent Israeli spies Egyptian people convicted of spying for Israel Deaths from cancer in Israel Burials at Har HaMenuchot