“The Gatekeepers”
Open Up at Tropic
Reviewed
by Shirrel Rhoades
We’ve all heard about the Mossad,
Israel’s not-so-secret Secret Service. But have you ever heard of Shin Bet?
Short for Sherut haBitachon haKlali, this is Israel’s internal security
service. It is one of that country’s three intelligence organizations (alongside
Mossad and Aman, the military intelligence).
Shin Bet’s motto is “Magen VeLo Year’e,” Hebrew for
“Defender that shall not be seen.” It is sometimes called “The Unseen Shield.”
That’s why we’re
surprised to see a documentary about Shin Bet, one that features six former
heads of this secretive organization -- Ami Ayalon, Avraham Shalom, Yaakov
Peri, Carmi Gillon, Avi Dichter, and Yuval Diskin. (Diskin was still serving as
head of Shin Bet at the time.)
Founded in 1948
during the Arab-Israeli War, Shin Bet was originally headed by Isser Harel, who
went on to oversee the Mossad. He is known as the Father of Israeli
Intelligence.
Sherut haBitachon haKlali’s task is to
provide state security. This includes rooting out terrorist activities;
overseeing intelligence from the West Bank and Gaza Strip; protection of senior
officials, buildings and infrastructure, airlines, and embassies; as well as
counterespionage. Spy stuff.
Directed by Dror
Moreh, “The Gatekeepers” was nominated for Best Documentary in the 85th
Academy Awards. Three years in the making, the challenge to Moreh was getting
these secretive Gatekeepers to agree to appear on camera and discuss their
work.
Ami Ayalon, now
serving as a Minister without Portfolio in the Security Cabinet, was the first
to step forward. He helped Moreh contact the other surviving leaders of
Shin Bet.
Following a
chronological order, the film is divided into seven segments: Six Day War, the
controversial 300 bus incident, the Oslo Accords, the assassination of Yitzhak
Rabin, negotiations with Palestine during the Second Intifada, the
assassination of Yahya Ayyash, and reflections on the ethics of Shin Bet.
The film
recounts how each of the group came to reconsider these hardline tactics and
“advocate a conciliatory approach toward their enemies based on a two-state
solution.”
As Yaakov Peri
says, ““These moments end up etched deep inside you, and when you retire, you
become a bit of a leftist.”
srhoades@aol.com
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