Image Credentials: Image Title: Operation Diamond: The Mossad’s Acquisition of the MiG-21 Source: (Gemini) Date: December 2025. Attribution: This image was created using AI-generated imagery (Gemini) and does not depict a real-world scene.
August 15, 1966, marks the successful conclusion of one of the most audacious and consequential operations in the history of Israeli intelligence. Codenamed “Diamond,” the mission secured a Soviet-made MiG-21 fighter jet, at the time considered one of the most advanced military aircraft in the world, providing Israel with a critical tactical advantage.
By Elliot Hayes
Since 1961, the USSR had begun supplying the formidable MiG-21 to various Arab states, including Egypt, Iraq, and Syria. Its triangular wing design earned it the nickname “balalaika” among pilots. Acquiring this aircraft was a top priority for the Israeli Air Force (IAF), which urgently needed to understand its flight and tactical characteristics.
The Initial Failure and the Mysterious Tip
The operation began with a setback. An initial attempt to bribe an Egyptian MiG-21 pilot was thwarted when the pilot, a Copt, betrayed the recruiter, leading to the recruiter’s execution.
However, the opportunity arose unexpectedly in 1965. A visitor arrived at the Israeli embassy in Paris and delivered a cryptic message to a diplomat, if Israel needed a MiG-21, they should call a specific number in Baghdad.
This led a Mossad agent to travel to Iraq, posing as a representative of an international medical equipment company. The agent called the number and was connected to Yosef Shamash, a servant for the wealthy Christian Redfa clan. One member of that clan, Lieutenant Colonel Munir Redfa, was a high-ranking pilot in the Iraqi Air Force who flew the MiG-21.
The Terms of “Diamond”
The Redfa clan was facing severe persecution and declining financial stability in Iraq, making the pilot receptive to the Mossad’s proposal. Redfa was offered an extraordinary package: £500,000 and Israeli citizenship.
However, Redfa made a non-negotiable demand that demonstrated his loyalty to his kin: his entire extended family had to be evacuated from Iraq before the operation could proceed.
The Mossad executed the family evacuation with meticulous precision. First, Redfa’s uncle was moved to Switzerland, where he received a substantial initial payment of £250,000. Next, utilizing the network of the long-standing Israeli ally, Kurdish guerrilla leader Mustafa Barazani, the rest of Munir Redfa’s family members were covertly taken across the rugged border into Iran.
The Hijack and the Aftermath
With the family secured, the final act commenced. Five Mossad task forces were involved in the final operational phase. On the morning of August 15, 1966, at 7:30 am, Lieutenant Colonel Munir Redfa took off in his MiG-21 and, instead of completing his planned flight path, flew the highly classified jet directly to Israel. He successfully landed the aircraft and received his full payment of £500,000. Redfa later worked as a pilot for an oil airline before relocating to Western Europe in 1969.
The captured MiG was immediately subjected to extensive flight tests by the IAF. This familiarity with the aircraft’s flight envelope and tactical limitations proved to be of invaluable help to Israel during the subsequent Six-Day War in 1967. The aircraft was later sent to the United States for further advanced study before being returned to Israel, where it is now a historical artifact displayed in the Israeli Air Force Museum.
Operation Diamond remains a testament to the effectiveness of human intelligence, demonstrating how strategic planning and the exploitation of political circumstances can yield critical technological advantages in the complex theater of military intelligence.
References
- Thomas, G. (1999). Gideon’s Spies: The Secret History of the Mossad. St. Martin’s Press. (Details on the operation’s planning and execution).
- Shiff, Z., & Ya’ari, E. (1985). Israel’s Lebanon War. Simon and Schuster. (Context on the strategic importance of the MiG-21 to the IAF).
- The Associated Press. (1966). Historical news coverage surrounding the defection of the Iraqi pilot.
- Aloni, S. (2007). Israeli Mirage and Nesher Aces. Osprey Publishing. (Technical and tactical analysis of the MiG-21’s capabilities as understood by the IAF).
- Israeli Air Force Museum, Hatzerim Airbase. (Exhibits and historical records related to the captured MiG-21).