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The Embassy of the State of Israel in Iran (Hebrew: שגרירות מדינת ישראל באיראן; Arabic: سفارة دولة إسرائيل في إيران) was the diplomatic mission of Israel in Iran when Iran and Israel had diplomatic relations from 1948 to 1979, the year of the Iranian Revolution.[1][2]

Embassy of the State of Israel in Iran
שגרירות מדינת ישראל טהראן
LocationImperial State of Iran
AddressTehran
Opening1948
Closed18 February 1979
AmbassadorYossef Harmelin

History

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During the reign of Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, Iran became the second Muslim country after Turkey to recognize Israel.[3] Israel had a permanent delegation in Tehran, which served as a de facto embassy, ​​and in 1964 it was upgraded to a de jure embassy. Israeli companies such as El Al and Koor Industries also had operations in Iran.

The rescue of Israelis from Iran

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The situation in Iran deteriorated during 1978, and towards the end of the year, the evacuation of Israeli families in Iran began. On January 16, 1979, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi left Iran following severe and protracted riots, and on February 11, the new Islamic State was declared in Iran.

On February 11, only security personnel were in the embassy of Israel in Tehran. That morning, the Iranian military force guarding the embassy had left.

At that time, a crowd of about 20,000 people began storming the Israeli Embassy building. At the head of the crowd were Palestinian terrorists. On the same day, as Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and member of the "Council of the Islamic Revolution", Yasser Arafat hoisted the Palestinian flag over the building of the Israeli Embassy in Tehran, and the new Iranian authorities symbolically handed them the keys to the place. In this way, the Israeli embassy became the Palestinian embassy in Iran.

On February 18 1979, the Israeli ambassador, Yossef Harmelin, and the embassy staff fled the country.

The embassy after 1979

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The Palestine Liberation Organization backed the 1979 revolution, and several days after the revolution, PLO chief Yasser Arafat led a Palestinian delegation to Iran. The Palestinian delegates were publicly welcomed, and symbolically handed the keys to the former Israeli embassy in Tehran, which later became a Palestinian embassy.[4] Hani al-Hassan, one of the key diplomatic figures of the PLO, was appointed as the first ambassador of Palestine to Iran.[5]

List of ambassadors

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References

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  1. ^ "Iran Primer: Iran and Israel". FRONTLINE - Tehran Bureau. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
  2. ^ "Did Israel, under the shah, help start Iran's nuclear program?", The Times of Israel, 1 November 2013
  3. ^ .haaretz.com/middle-east-news/iran/MAGAZINE-how-israel-and-iran-went-from-allies-to-enemies-1.6049884 From friends to foes: How Israel and Iran turned into arch-enemies — Iran — Haaretz.com
  4. ^ "Iran and the Palestinians". 13 October 2010.
  5. ^ Hani Al- Hassan (1938- 2012) - Yasser Arafat Foundation