- JERUSALEM: David Kimche, the Israeli spy-turned-diplomat who played a key role in the Iran-Contra scandal that rocked President Ronald Reagan's administration, has died.
- He was 82.
The British-born Kimche began his career with Israel's Mossad spy agency in the 1950s after emigrating to Israel, and rose to deputy director of the agency. He later served as director-general of Israel's Foreign Ministry.
In the Iran-contra affair, Washington authorized Israel to sell US weapons to Iran in violation of an international embargo. Some of the proceeds later went to fund anti-communist Contra rebels in Nicaragua.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Kimche for the way he “combined elegance, patriotism and sophistication” and “exemplified how to fulfill a public mission.”