OBITUARY ¹

The Technical Genius of the Israeli Secret Service

Ephraim (Froike) Biegun, the former head of the Technical Department in the General Security Services, and founder of Beeper Communications Israel ² died on Wednesday June 13, 2007 in Tel Aviv, Israel. 1932 — 2007

4X4AF —  ³

Ephraim Biegun, nicknamed Froike, was known from his youth as a technical genius. His classmates in the fifth grade, at the Tel-Aviv School, remember Froike as the one who established an amateur radio station called “Voice of the Moon.”

When he completed his military service with the Communications Corps, Iesar Har-El, the head of the Israeli Secret Service⁴, sent him for an education program in the United States — to learn about modern technology. When he returned, Froike served between the years of 1954 and 1957 in the technical unit of the Israeli Secret Service. Avraham Shalom, also the former head of the Israeli Secret Service, says that “Froike has done things that until then we had only read about in the books.”

In 1957 Froike started engineering studies in London, and during the years of 1960 to 1970 was the head of the technical department of the Israeli Secret Service. In Yossi Melman and Eitan Haber's book, “The Spies,”⁵ they describe how the technical unit in 1961 cracked a radio broadcast from the Romanian Intelligence Service to their agent in Haifa. Baruch Nir, the former head of the Jewish department in the Israeli Secret Service, says that once when a problem had arisen that required a technical solution, Froike showed up the next day with a smile on his face, saying, “I have an idea.”

Froike Biegun with his wife Nitza - March 2005

In 1966 Froike won the award for Israel National Security. Naty Rotem, head of the security department, recalls how he helped him when dealing with the terror that threatened the passengers of El-Al, their airplanes, and Israeli embassies abroad.

During the years 1970-1977 Froike was the consul for science affairs in New York, as a representative of the Science Connections Bureau (SCAB). This was a loaded era: The Yom Kippur war and the “re-evaluation” of the Israeli-American relationship.

In 1978 Froike chose to retire and establish Beeper Communications LTD. Eli Mor, then the Vice President, tells that Froike, as was customary in the Israeli Secret Service, insisted on applying a double backup to each system, something that wasn't profitable, but contributed to the to the credibility of the company. Froike provided free pagers to people who were waiting for transplants and other unfortunate Israelis. Amos and Yael were born from his marriage to Rina Akselrod. His friends from the service and Beeper Communications describe him as a friend without limits, seated in his office leaning back with both feet on the desk and always with a smile on his face. When Froike became ill with cancer his friends acquired an experimental medicine that prolonged his life for seven months.

¹ This is a translation of an article written in Hebrew by Uri Dromi and published in the Haaretz Daily Newspaper in Israel. The corrections and additions that were made, were approved by Froike's son, Amos Biegun abiegun@counterp.com.

² Now a Motorola affiliated company.

³ Silent key refers to an amateur radio operator who has deceased. The term is frequently abbreviated . The key in the term refers to a telegraph key, the instrument that all early amateur radio operators, as well as many contemporary amateur radio operators, have used to send Morse code. The term is used to refer to any amateur radio operator who has deceased, regardless of whether or not they were known to have actively used a telegraph key or Morse code in their communications. When transmitted as two Morse code characters without separating audio delay, is a Morse code prosign meaning “end of communications.” (Wikipedia)

⁴ The Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations, often referred to as The Mossad (meaning The Institute), is Israel's intelligence agency and is responsible for intelligence collection, counter-terrorism, covert operations such as paramilitary activities, and the facilitation of aliyah where it is banned. It is one of the main Intelligence Community entities in Israel (along with Aman (military intelligence) and Shin Bet (internal security)), but its director reports directly to the Prime Minister. Its role and function is like that of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the USA, the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) in the United Kingdom, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) in Canada and the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) in Australia. “Mossad” is usually preceded by the definite article "the," though in common usage this is sometimes dropped.(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosad)

⁵ Yediot Ahronot Publications — a book in Hebrew by Eitan Haber and Yossi Melman called Hameraglim (“The Spies”).

Mossad's motto: Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety. —Proverbs 11:14 A commonly circulated internet myth incorrectly attributes the motto; “By way of deception, thou shalt do war”, to the Mossad.

Rest In Peace—my friend