A legendary agent of Israel's famous Mossad secret service has died almost unnoticed in Pretoria, leaving behind her a mystery about where she has been or is to be buried.
South African-born Sylvia Rafael, 67, whose married name was Schjodt, died on February 9 of leukaemia. Although a memorial service was held for her on February 12 in Brooklyn, Pretoria, it could not be established on Tuesday whether she had been buried or cremated in South Africa.
The Jerusalem Post reported that she was to be buried secretly in Israel, according to her wishes.
"It is a pity there are not more like her," the newspaper reported, quoting Shmuel Goren, a former deputy head of Mossad. "I don't usually speak about Mossad to the media, but I will say I'm really sorry she passed away."
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| 'One day, when true peace comes, they will write books about her, make movies of her life' |
Though reportedly involved in many Mossad operations, Rafael hit the headlines in 1973 when she was convicted of mistakenly assassinating a waiter in Norway. She was part of a Mossad team who believed they were killing Ali Hassan Salameh, the operations chief of the Black September terrorist group in Europe.
In a rare blunder by Mossad, Rafael and her fellow agents gunned down a Moroccan waiter called Ahmed Bouchiki in front of his pregnant wife in the Norwegian village of Lillehammer.
Rafael and five other agents were caught and she was sentenced to five years for second-degree murder. But after heavy pressure from Israel, Norway released her after 11 months and deported her back to Israel.
She returned to Norway in 1978, by then married to Annaeus Schjodt, the Norwegian lawyer who had defended her at her trial. About 10 years later, after attempts on her life, she quietly returned to her home country to live in Pretoria, the Post said. Her husband survives her in Pretoria.
Rafael had gone to Israel from South Africa in the mid-1960s as a volunteer on kibbutz Ramat Hakovesh, according to media reports. She was recruited into Mossad and took part in many operations against terrorists.
"One day, when true peace comes, they will write books about her, make movies of her life," Eitan Haber, a veteran defence correspondent of that era, wrote in Yediot Ahronot, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Friends in Pretoria remember her fondly. "She had a great sense of humour," one of them said on Tuesday. - Foreign Editor
- This article was originally published on page 5 of The Star on February 16, 2005
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