Alexandra Uteev Johnson
Encyclopedia
Alexandra Uteev "Alix" Johnson (August 9, 1946 - October 12, 2002) was a United States Foreign Service Officer
from 1972 to 1979. She is notable for the controversy that arose in 1979 over two reports that she wrote alleging that Israeli
authorities systematically used physical abuse to interrogate Palestinian
detainees.
, Johnson graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles
. As a Foreign Service Officer she worked as an analyst in the Department of State's
Bureau of Intelligence and Research
specializing in Soviet
relations with Arab countries. She received Arabic
language training from 1975 to 1977 in Beirut
and Tunis
and was assigned in February 1977 to the United States Consulate General in Jerusalem as vice-consul and post visa
officer.
In her work as a visa officer Johnson investigated 29 "visa security cases" involving Palestinians seeking entry into the United States who had been convicted by Israeli military courts of being members of illegal organizations, including the Palestine Liberation Organization
(PLO). Individuals found to be terrorist
s would be barred by law from entering the United States. According to Johnson, all 29 individuals she interviewed gave similar accounts of being beaten or tortured by Israeli interrogators.
to the Department of State describing the abusive interrogation methods that her interviewees claimed that Israeli authorities had used, including "beating with sticks and whips, prolonged immersion in cold water, hanging by the hands and sexual sadism." Classified "confidential," the cable was designated "Jerusalem 1500." It was followed in November by "Jerusalem 3239," classified "secret," in which Johnson concluded that physical mistreatment of Arab detainees in the West Bank
was a "systematic practice" of Israeli authorities. Returning to Washington in January 1979, Johnson was denied promotion, which led to her automatic dismissal from the Foreign Service for not achieving promotion within her mandatory six-year "probationary" period as a junior officer. Johnson later told The New York Times
that she believed her human rights reporting was what led to her dismissal, a charge that the Department of State denied.
On February 7, 1979, The Washington Post
published a story about Johnson's cables, indicating that they had influenced the Department of State's decision to describe Israeli abuse of Arab detainees as a "systematic practice" in its annual human rights country report
on Israel sent to Congress
a few days earlier. Time magazine
later reported that Israel's security agency Shin Bet, with the approval of Federal Bureau of Investigation
attaché
s at the United States Embassy
in Tel Aviv
, had put Johnson under surveillance and wiretapped her telephone while she was still posted to Jerusalem. Time also reported Shin Bet's allegations that Johnson was involved with terrorists.
Johnson was briefly engaged to be married to one of the alleged torture victims whom she interviewed for her reports. Explaining the relationship to The New York Times, Johnson said that after the man received his visa and went to the United States, he wrote her a letter proposing marriage and that she accepted after visiting him in Chicago in 1978. Johnson said that she broke off the engagement after a few weeks and had not had any contact with her former fiancé since then.
and professional genealogist
. She died in Enid, Oklahoma
, in 2002 from a brain tumor
.
United States Foreign Service
The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...
from 1972 to 1979. She is notable for the controversy that arose in 1979 over two reports that she wrote alleging that Israeli
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
authorities systematically used physical abuse to interrogate Palestinian
State of Palestine
Palestine , officially declared as the State of Palestine , is a state that was proclaimed in exile in Algiers on 15 November 1988, when the Palestine Liberation Organization's National Council adopted the unilateral Palestinian Declaration of Independence...
detainees.
Early life and career
Born in Sacramento, CaliforniaSacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
, Johnson graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
. As a Foreign Service Officer she worked as an analyst in the Department of State's
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
Bureau of Intelligence and Research
Bureau of Intelligence and Research
The Bureau of Intelligence and Research is an intelligence bureau in the U.S. State Department tasked with analyzing information. Originally founded as the Research and Analysis Branch of the Office of Strategic Services , it was transferred to the State Department at the end of World War II...
specializing in Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
relations with Arab countries. She received Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
language training from 1975 to 1977 in Beirut
Beirut
Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...
and Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
and was assigned in February 1977 to the United States Consulate General in Jerusalem as vice-consul and post visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
officer.
In her work as a visa officer Johnson investigated 29 "visa security cases" involving Palestinians seeking entry into the United States who had been convicted by Israeli military courts of being members of illegal organizations, including the Palestine Liberation Organization
Palestine Liberation Organization
The Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
(PLO). Individuals found to be terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
s would be barred by law from entering the United States. According to Johnson, all 29 individuals she interviewed gave similar accounts of being beaten or tortured by Israeli interrogators.
"Jerusalem 1500" controversy
In May 1978, Johnson's superiors at the consulate approved her draft of a cableTelegraphy
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages via some form of signalling technology. Telegraphy requires messages to be converted to a code which is known to both sender and receiver...
to the Department of State describing the abusive interrogation methods that her interviewees claimed that Israeli authorities had used, including "beating with sticks and whips, prolonged immersion in cold water, hanging by the hands and sexual sadism." Classified "confidential," the cable was designated "Jerusalem 1500." It was followed in November by "Jerusalem 3239," classified "secret," in which Johnson concluded that physical mistreatment of Arab detainees in the West Bank
West Bank
The West Bank ) of the Jordan River is the landlocked geographical eastern part of the Palestinian territories located in Western Asia. To the west, north, and south, the West Bank shares borders with the state of Israel. To the east, across the Jordan River, lies the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan...
was a "systematic practice" of Israeli authorities. Returning to Washington in January 1979, Johnson was denied promotion, which led to her automatic dismissal from the Foreign Service for not achieving promotion within her mandatory six-year "probationary" period as a junior officer. Johnson later told The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
that she believed her human rights reporting was what led to her dismissal, a charge that the Department of State denied.
On February 7, 1979, The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
published a story about Johnson's cables, indicating that they had influenced the Department of State's decision to describe Israeli abuse of Arab detainees as a "systematic practice" in its annual human rights country report
United States' Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices are publications on the annual human right conditions in countries and regions outside the United States, submitted annually by the United States Department of State to the United States Congress. The reports cover internationally recognized individual,...
on Israel sent to Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
a few days earlier. Time magazine
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
later reported that Israel's security agency Shin Bet, with the approval of Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
attaché
Attaché
Attaché is a French term in diplomacy referring to a person who is assigned to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency...
s at the United States Embassy
Diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission is a group of people from one state or an international inter-governmental organisation present in another state to represent the sending state/organisation in the receiving state...
in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, had put Johnson under surveillance and wiretapped her telephone while she was still posted to Jerusalem. Time also reported Shin Bet's allegations that Johnson was involved with terrorists.
Johnson was briefly engaged to be married to one of the alleged torture victims whom she interviewed for her reports. Explaining the relationship to The New York Times, Johnson said that after the man received his visa and went to the United States, he wrote her a letter proposing marriage and that she accepted after visiting him in Chicago in 1978. Johnson said that she broke off the engagement after a few weeks and had not had any contact with her former fiancé since then.
Post-controversy career and death
Following the controversy over her cables, Johnson became a court reporterCourt reporter
A court reporter, stenotype reporter, voice writing reporter, or transcriber is a person whose occupation is to transcribe spoken or recorded speech into written form, using machine shorthand or voice writing equipment to produce official transcripts of court hearings, depositions and other...
and professional genealogist
Genealogy
Genealogy is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history. Genealogists use oral traditions, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kinship and pedigrees of its members...
. She died in Enid, Oklahoma
Enid, Oklahoma
Enid is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. In 2010, the population was 49,379, making it the ninth largest city in Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a...
, in 2002 from a brain tumor
Brain tumor
A brain tumor is an intracranial solid neoplasm, a tumor within the brain or the central spinal canal.Brain tumors include all tumors inside the cranium or in the central spinal canal...
.