Exposes one of the most well-protected political-military secrets of the Cold War.

Israel has been a nuclear power for more than 25 years. Yet even in 1991, Israeli officials denied that their country possessed an atomic arsenal. Here, for the first time is the story of the Israeli nuclear weapons program & its influence on world events. Recounts Israel's clandestine nuclear mission, from the building of a reactor site in the Negev desert during the late 1950s, to the establishment by the late 1970s of a sophisticated underground nuclear production facility that targeted & threatened Israel's enemies in the Middle East as well as the Soviet Union itself. America turned a blind eye toward Israel's nuclear capacity while paying lip service to the goal of nuclear non-proliferation.

Samuel Rosen passed from this life into the next with no struggle, no anxiety as the thin blade severed the artery in his throat . . . His killer calmly stepped back out of the range of the spurting blood, wiped off his knife with a corner of the duvet and whispered "Allah Akbar," God is great. Far away in Bombay, Ari Ben Chaim learns that four people in his life have been murdered by unknown assassins -- his adoptive parents, a psychologist who treated him after he resigned from the Israeli Army, even an old Englishwoman who had been his baby nurse many years before -- and Ari must find out why. He returns to Israel in search of answers, only to find more questions when he is kidnapped by a Muslim splinter group, escapes and then is recruited by the Israeli intelligence service for a top secret mission into the heart of Iran's weapons program.

Until now, there has been no detailed account of Israel's nuclear history. Previous treatments of the subject relied heavily on rumors, leaks, and journalistic speculations. But with Israel and the Bomb, Avner Cohen has forged an interpretive political history that draws on thousands of American and Israeli government documents—most of them recently declassified and never before cited—and more than one hundred interviews with key individuals who played important roles in this story. Cohen reveals that Israel crossed the nuclear weapons threshold on the eve of the 1967 Six-Day War, yet it remains ambiguous about its nuclear capability to this day. What made this posture of "opacity" possible, and how did it evolve? Cohen focuses on a two-decade period from about 1950 until 1970, during which David Ben-Gurion's vision of making Israel a nuclear-weapon state was realized. He weaves together the story of the formative years of Israel's nuclear program, from the founding of the Israeli Atomic Energy Commission in 1952, to the alliance with France that gave Israel the sophisticated technology it needed, to the failure of American intelligence to identify the Dimona Project for what it was, to the negotiations between President Nixon and Prime Minister Meir that led to the current policy of secrecy. Cohen also analyzes the complex reasons Israel concealed its nuclear program—from concerns over Arab reaction and the negative effect of the debate at home to consideration of America's commitment to nonproliferation. Israel and the Bomb highlights the key questions and the many potent issues surrounding Israel's nuclear history. This book will be a critical resource for students of nuclear proliferation, Middle East politics, Israeli history, and American-Israeli relations, as well as a revelation for general readers.

“You are a man who has vowed to protect his family, even at the cost of your own life. So you have no other choice. . . . You must fight, Samson. You must.” The year is 1941, and Samson Abrams makes a life-or-death decision that lands him, and his entire family, in the notorious concentration camp Auschwitz. When Samson is recognized by Dr. Josef Mengele and Commandant Rudolf Höss as a former boxing champion, he is ordered box for their entertainment. A win means extra rations, but the penalty for losing is death in the gas chambers. One question haunts Samson as he and his family face one atrocity after another: Where is God in the face of such evil? An unexpected friendship between the Jewish Samson and the Polish Catholic priest Maximilian Kolbe challenges Samson to examine what little is left of his faith, but will it give him strength when he needs it most? Based on true stories, Samson: A Savior Will Rise blends Shawn Hoffman’s thorough research with a compelling narrative that provokes questions about faith, hope, and love.

"Almost defies belief . . . a riveting tale of Israeli determination and cunning—and Washington's indecision, ineptitude and acquiescence."—Dallas Morning News An investigation into Israel's nuclear capabilities discloses information about the country's rush toward nuclear status, its collaboration with South Africa and Iran, and its espionage activities.

From the highly acclaimed author of "The Preservationist" and "Fallen" comes another unique and astonishing biblical retelling.