The Quest for the Red Prince [Hardcover]

Michael Bar-Zohar (Author), Eitan Haber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 1983

Few terrorists have been as internationally notorious - or as deadly as "The Red Prince." That was the nickname of Ali Hassan Salameh, a Palestinian who oversaw the Black September Organization from 1970 until his murder by car bomb in 1979. Salameh masterminded the 1972 hijacking of Sabena flight 572 to Tel Aviv, killing 27 tourists at Israel's Lod airport, and the murder of the Israeli athletes at the Olympic Games in Munich. In 1973, he organized the murder of the American and Saudi ambassadors in Sudan. The Red Prince's story is also that of General Aharon "Arale" Yariv, Golda Meir's choice to run Israel's counterterrorism response, and of Zvi Zamir, the head of the Mossad, Israel's intelligence unit. As The Quest for The Red Prince unfolds, Zamir and Yariv orchestrate a series of daring cross-border assassinations, picking off Black September members one by one, chasing down Salameh until a final reckoning in Beirut. The Quest for The Red Prince does more than catalog the awful crimes of a terrorist, and Israel's search for a way to end his bloody reign: it authoritatively recounts the history of one of the central conflicts of our time - the Palestinian-Israeli struggle. (6 x 9, 248 pages, b&w photos)

Michael Bar-Zohar's previous books include a biography of Ben Gurion and a history of the Israeli Secret Services.

Eitan Haber is an Israeli journalist and coauthor of a book about the raid at Entebbe.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Few terrorists have been as internationally notorious - or as deadly as "The Red Prince." That was the nickname of Ali Hassan Salameh, a Palestinian who oversaw the Black September Organization from 1970 until his murder by car bomb in 1979. Salameh masterminded the 1972 hijacking of Sabena flight 572 to Tel Aviv, killing 27 tourists at Israel's Lod airport, and the murder of the Israeli athletes at the Olympic Games in Munich. In 1973, he organized the murder of the American and Saudi ambassadors in Sudan. The Red Prince's story is also that of General Aharon "Arale" Yariv, Golda Meir's choice to run Israel's counterterrorism response, and of Zvi Zamir, the head of the Mossad, Israel's intelligence unit. As The Quest for The Red Prince unfolds, Zamir and Yariv orchestrate a series of daring cross-border assassinations, picking off Black September members one by one, chasing down Salameh until a final reckoning in Beirut. The Quest for The Red Prince does more than catalog the awful crimes of a terrorist, and Israel's search for a way to end his bloody reign: it authoritatively recounts the history of one of the central conflicts of our time - the Palestinian-Israeli struggle. (6 x 9, 248 pages, b&w photos)Michael Bar-Zohar's previous books include a biography of Ben Gurion and a history of the Israeli Secret Services.Eitan Haber is an Israeli journalist and coauthor of a book about the raid at Entebbe.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: W. Morrow (1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688020437
• ISBN-13: 978-0688020439
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,186,605 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Born in Bulgaria, grew up in Israel, studied in Jerusalem and in France (Ph.D. in Political Science), fought in four Israeli-Arab wars (1956, 1967, 1973, 1982), spent nine years beside David Ben-Gurion, Israel's founder, became a fervent supporter of peace between Israel and her neighbors, served two terms in Parliament, Professor at Haifa University then at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, represented Israel at the Council of Europe, wrote more than 30 books and a few screenplays,won several awards including the French Academy award, the Ben-Gurion award, the International migration award and was knighted by the President of France as Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Offers more than you expect!, May 30, 2006

By 

A. Chopra - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Quest for the Red Prince: Israel's Relentless Manhunt for One of the World's Deadliest and Most Wanted Arab Terrorists (Paperback)

I think that this is one of the best books written about Israel and Palestine conflicts. This book gives you the detailed history of the conflict between the two, starting as early as 1918. Michael Bar Bar-Zohar and Eitan Haber's access to the top officials of Mossad, has given the true accounts of the incidents. The place, date, and other details are mostly accurate. Because both the authors have Israeli roots, some people have found the book one sided mostly praising the finesse of Israeli secret service agency Mossad. However, if you read the book carefully, you will see many events where Mossad failed to get Hassan Salameh, and later his son Ali Hassan Salameh (who was later known as Red Prince).

I bought this book to know more about the terrorist who planned the Munich massacre in 1972. Ali Hassan Salameh, formed the Black September group with support from Yasir Arafat and his militant group Fateh. Instead only focusing on Munich massacre, this book goes beyond and explains several events that many of us don't know about.

This is an important book and should be read by anyone wanting to know the real cause of conflict between Israel and Palestine. On almost every page there was a situation or fact described that had me amazed or terrified to imagine. This book is extremely readable and hard to put down, although you know the ultimate outcome.

23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Mossad Rarely Fail, February 21, 2005

By 

Avid One - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Quest for the Red Prince: Israel's Relentless Manhunt for One of the World's Deadliest and Most Wanted Arab Terrorists (Paperback)

This is an intriguing story. Very well written with excellent references and accuracy. Authors Bar-Zohar and Haber trace the history of Ali Salameh, a Palestinian who directed the Black September group from 1970 until the Mossad eliminated him in 1979. The Mossad rarely fail when they have decided to take an action.

Interestingly, the authors manage to put a human, mortal face on the Red Prince, a notorious terrorist. While it makes him recognizable, it also underscores his terrible malevolence and brutality. They also clearly show how Arafat created Black September to carry out the actions that the PLO wanted below the radar. That is reprehensible and precisely one of the reasons that so far no peace talks could ever succeed in the region.

I found nuggets throughout the story. Connections to world events that you may remember from the media coverage at the time. Now, you'll get the untold or unrealized story. I heartily recommend this book as a true crime, thriller genre story that will keep you turning pages to the end.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great reminder of what the world continues to deal with..., July 23, 2007

By 

Wabbaloo - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Quest for the Red Prince: Israel's Relentless Manhunt for One of the World's Deadliest and Most Wanted Arab Terrorists (Paperback)

To all the Palestinian apologists out there, I say: Read this book. See how a "struggle for independence" turned into a savage and bloody international killing spree. Also witness the explicit cooperation of the Mufti of Jerusalem - you still don't think religious authorities don't condone terrorism, do you? Check out Arafat as well. All is double-talk is in open press now. Terrorism is a legitimate form of warfare for these people. They know they can't beat us head-on, so they kill non-combatants and wait for the apologists to condemn Israel and the US.

You apologists will also see how Ali Hassan Salameh and his family tried to brainwash his child as he himself was brainwashed. A murderer is a murderer is a murderer. Just because they have a "cause" behind them doesn't make it right.

These people whine and complain about wanting freedom, but look what they do to each other. Salameh and his father were criminals, extorting and robbing and murdering their own people and establishing criminal rackets. Zarqawi was the same in Jordan, as was Saddam in Iraq. Nobody stood up to them, and no one stands up for themselves in the Middle East. They are too used to being repressed. Sounds like Iraqis are starting to stand up to Al Qaeda. Hopefully they will drive them out and realize we have given them the best opportunity for freedom they could ever hope for.