Daughters of late envoy who survived assassination bid: ‘He was devoted to Israel’
Shlomo Argov, who died 20 years ago this week, survived an attempt on his life by Palestinian terrorists in 1982 while serving as the Israeli ambassador to the UK.
As the Israeli embassy in London prepares to commemorate the late ambassador Shlomo Argov who died 20 years ago, his two daughters spoke at length with Jewish News about their father and the tragedy that befell on the family after Palestinian terrorists tried to assassinate him in 1982.
Argov holds a special place in the Israel’s history due to an impressive diplomatic career spanning over 20 years, serving as both the Israeli consulate in New York and later as ambassador to Mexico, The Netherlands and the UK.
For his daughters, Edna and Judy, Shlomo was a man best described as loving, funny, “devoted to representing Israel and loved telling stories about his childhood in Jerusalem”.
Being the daughters of a career diplomat, the family traveled extensively and lived in many different cultures. And although they both remember their upbringing as extremely diverse and full of culture, Edna said their father was “very concerned about the transitions and making sure we were comfortable.”
“Looking back at those years, we had such an amazing childhood. In those days people didn’t really travel the way we did. Basically we traveled all over the world,” Judy said.
Argov himself was a man of culture, studying in both Georgetown University and London School of Economics. He also made an effort to learn the languages of the countries where he was serving, ending up both Spanish, Dutch, English and of course Hebrew.
Both Shlomo and his wife Hava made sure that both Judy and Edna felt connected to Israel while living abroad, talking about their come country and giving them private tutors who taught them everything that their Israeli peers were taught.
But being a high-ranking Israeli diplomat abroad comes with risks. On 3 June 1982, three terrorist from the Palestinian group, Abu Nidal, shot and severely wounded Argov as he got into his car outside Dorchester Hotel in London.
This is where Shlomo Argov, the Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom was taken after attempted assassination the previous evening. Shlomo Argov was shot in the head as he got into his car after a banquet at the Dorchester Hotel, in Park Lane, London.
Both Judy and Edna were in Israel at the time. Judy, who was 22 at the time, lived in an apartment in Haifa, where Edna, then 19, stayed over.
“They weren’t able to contact me so I heard it from a friend who heard it on the news. It was such a horrible night,” Judy said.
With very little knowledge about their father’s condition, Edna and Judy flew to London the next day, going straight to the hospital where their mother was.
“It became obvious after a couple of weeks that dad’s condition was not going to improve,” Edna said.
Shlomo had been shot in the head, leaving him paralysed and with severe damages to his speech. He was eventually flown back to Israel where he was hospitalised at Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem.
While the assassination attempt shook the family, Edna recalled that there was always an acute awareness about the dangers involved in their father’s work.
“Representing Israel is very complicated and the potential for such a tragedy is always very prominent. I guess it’s somewhat similar to a parent whose son is in the military and you get that knock on the door in the middle of the night and see two officers standing there. It’s hideous and horrible but it’s a thought that has crossed your mind,” Edna said.
While the family was dealing with a personal tragedy, the nation reacted promptly to the assassination. The day after, the Israeli cabinet authorised the invasion of Lebanon.
The writing had already been on the wall for a while, but the assassination attempt was the “last straw” that made Israel invade Lebanon, as Edna described it.
“Our mother, and dad for that matter, could not stand the fact that the war was connected to what had happened to him. He didn’t want to think that so many people lost their lives because of it,” Judy said.
“We didn’t like it and we repeated that constantly, our mother certainly did. It was very unpleasant for us.
Both Judy and Edna recall how their mother became consumed with their father’s situation. “It impacted our mother’s ability to travel and spend time with our brother’s children,” Edna said.
Shlomo had been running all of his life, making him physical strong. He therefore lived for another 21 years, but suffering for most of that time. “He certainly didn’t deserve to live that way, to be trapped in a body like that.”
Although the assassination attempt took place in London, it never changed Judy or Edna’s feelings about the city.
“We love London. I go there all the time. The connection to the UK is so strong because it’s basically where my parents started their lives and where our father ended it in such a tragic way,” Judy said.
Ambassador Shlomo Argov was 73-years-old when he died on 23 February 2003 at Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
