When Iran And Israel Were The Best Of Friends
- By Amos Chapple
Before revolution toppled the Iranian monarchy in 1979, Tehran and Tel-Aviv exchanged tourists and trade instead of missiles and drones.
1
Iranian diplomat Reza Saffinia salutes Israeli soldiers as he enters the residence of Israel’s first president, Chaim Weizmann, near Tel-Aviv in 1950.
In 1950, Iran broke with its Arab neighbors by informally recognizing the fledgling Jewish state.
In 1950, Iran broke with its Arab neighbors by informally recognizing the fledgling Jewish state.
2
David Ben Gurion (left), the first prime minister of Israel, meets with Iranian diplomat Reza Saffinia (in a striped suit) at a party held by an Iranian delegation in Jerusalem in 1950.
Relations between the two countries would become so warm there were eventually daily flights between Tehran and Tel-Aviv. In secret, Iran and Israel even worked together to jointly develop a missile system.
Relations between the two countries would become so warm there were eventually daily flights between Tehran and Tel-Aviv. In secret, Iran and Israel even worked together to jointly develop a missile system.
3
Dairy cows being loaded aboard a cargo plane bound for Iran at an Israeli airfield in 1965.
While Israel benefited from Iranian oil, Tehran acquired Israeli expertise in agricultural and military technologies.
While Israel benefited from Iranian oil, Tehran acquired Israeli expertise in agricultural and military technologies.
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Men from the Middle East and Africa listen to a lecture on farming at an educational facility in Beit Berl, just north of Tel-Aviv, in 1971.
5
A Jewish wedding at an unspecified location in Iran in the 1950s. The ceremony is being officiated by Rabbi Shlomo Cohen Tzedek (center right), the chief rabbi of the country.
Hebrew script behind the group references the bible verse: “Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table.”
Hebrew script behind the group references the bible verse: “Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table.”
6
Wrestlers from Israel and Iran face off during the seventh Maccabiah Games in Tel-Aviv, Israel, in August 1965. The games are held every four years and are open to Jewish athletes from around the world.
Jews have had a presence in Iran for millennia. In the 1970s, nearly 100,000 Jews lived in the country. As of 2012, just 8,756 remained.
Jews have had a presence in Iran for millennia. In the 1970s, nearly 100,000 Jews lived in the country. As of 2012, just 8,756 remained.
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A photo taken by Israeli photographer Benno Rothenberg of a colleague approaching the ruins of Persepolis, the ancient capital of the Persian Empire, in 1968.
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An Iranian fuel tanker arriving at an Israeli port in 1975.
Following the Six-Day War, in 1967, Arab hostility to Israel and its allies led to an international oil crisis. Iranian oil provided a lifeline to Israel at the time.
Following the Six-Day War, in 1967, Arab hostility to Israel and its allies led to an international oil crisis. Iranian oil provided a lifeline to Israel at the time.
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An Israeli traveler (left) knocks back a drink alongside workers near the Shatt al-Arab River in western Iran in the 1950s.
Israelis living in Iran before the 1979 revolution recall being uninterested in the repressions enacted by the Shah on his own people. "They didn’t complain and we didn’t intervene," one Israeli man recalled in a film about the prerevolutionary period. "We’re not blind, we knew what kind of reality we were living in, but it’s not our bloody business," he added.
Israelis living in Iran before the 1979 revolution recall being uninterested in the repressions enacted by the Shah on his own people. "They didn’t complain and we didn’t intervene," one Israeli man recalled in a film about the prerevolutionary period. "We’re not blind, we knew what kind of reality we were living in, but it’s not our bloody business," he added.
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A picture taken by Israeli photographer Benno Rothenberg showing unidentified archaeologists at work in Iran’s Gilan Province in 1968.
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An exhibit of Iranian publications at a book fair in Jerusalem in 1963.
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Iran’s chess team (left) play their US counterparts during the World Chess Olympiad in Haifa, Israel, in 1976.
