Vengeance.

(Originally published on 2008)

Vengeance by George Jonas, the book on which the movie Munich (by Steven Spielberg) was based, deals with the Israeli response to Palestinian terrorists following the 1972 Munich massacre. Mossad prepares and sends a group of agents to Western Europe with a list of 11 individuals to eliminate. They begin the assignment, but they don't finish it as originally planned. The book was written in 1984. It remains relevant, even though some tactics have changed today—such as the targeted killings of certain leaders of Arab terrorist groups, or at least what one used to read in the news a couple of years ago. This is neither new nor unique to Israel, but in this case, the book tells this particular story. It has a few interesting quotes. It is around 440 pages long. Simple language, although at times I didn't like how it was written—in some instances because it doesn't achieve its purpose, and in others because the phrasing feels somewhat inappropriate, or perhaps it's just the translation.

It is interesting from a historical perspective; it is detailed in certain aspects without being overwhelming. The book mentions an Argentine, the person in charge of teaching and instructing on counterfeiting. Then there is a part that didn't fully make sense to me, where it says he never told Mossad about the existence of the Group—does that mean Mossad found out when they read the book? That part doesn't make much sense, or at least I couldn't make sense of it. The author starts by expressing support for this kind of vengeance, an "eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," but then, near the end, practically implies the opposite. However, he puts this in the mouth of the mission's lead agent, making it visible on two or three occasions—suggesting that it didn't do much good or that it isn't a method to stop violence, especially when he reflects on everything that happened at the end and mentions other acts committed by the terrorists. He applies another saying: "violence begets violence." The author cites other texts, continuously pointing out differences with them.

It is recommended to read the book rather than just sticking with the movie, which is also worth watching. What happened to me with the movie was that it leaves you with a grim feeling about the story and everything that occurred, but reading the book leaves that same grim feeling along with the opportunity to do an analysis that goes a bit beyond the slaughter, gunfire, and bombs. You get a broader overview: how they thought, how they were organized—both on the operational and managerial sides—why certain people were chosen, their position in society, power dynamics, and how governments or different groups behave in response to specific acts and situations. Much more is covered, and while it doesn't offer a deep dive, it allows you to get a general idea and draw your own conclusions.

In addition, it provides a very general idea of how the world was (and functioned) at that historical moment regarding the topic at hand, as well as some angles that touch upon the book's central axis to some degree. The young age of the agents—and the terrorists too—is striking; at least, the idea that they were quite young hadn't crossed my mind regarding the Mossad agents, though I did have that impression regarding the terrorists.
There is a passage I found funny, which must be understood in its context: right in the middle of the mission, war breaks out, and three of them decide to return to their country to fight. 

They do so without saying a word, arrive, join their respective regiments, go to the front line, fight, and are lucky enough to all emerge unharmed—until they are discovered, summoned, and what follows takes place:

On the way, he wondered if Steve and Robert would be there waiting for him, but they weren't. Ephraim was there.

"Are you all out of your minds, boys?" he inquired when Avner was brought into his office.

"Do you think you're heroes, that we can't win the war without you? I should court-martial you!"

Despite Ephraim's words, Avner could tell by the tone of his voice that, as he expected, there wouldn't be any real repercussions.

"I want you out of Israel today," Ephraim continued. "Go back to Europe and finish what you're doing. If we need you to come back here, we'll call you. If we don't order you back, I don't want any of you showing your face in Israel again. Have I made myself clear?"