Munir Redfa
Encyclopedia
Munir Redfa (born Munir Habib Jamil Rufa) (1934 – circa 1998) was an Iraqi fighter pilot
, of ethnic Assyrian
origin, who defected
to Israel in 1966 by flying a MiG-21 of the Iraqi Air Force. In what is considered as one of the Mossad
's most successful operations, Redfa's entire extended family was smuggled safely out of Iraq to Israel. The MiG-21 fighter was evaluated by the Israeli Air Force
and was later loaned to the United States
for testing and intelligence analysis. Knowledge obtained from analysis of the aircraft was instrumental to the successes achieved by the Israeli Air Force
in its future encounters with Arab MiG-21s. Redfa's defection was the subject of the movie Steal the Sky
.
He was the second of nine children. Like many other Assyrians, his family fled to Iraq as part of the Christian
migration from southeast Turkey northwestern mountains following the Assyrian Genocide
.
After Redfa's defection, a press conference was held during which he indicated that he had suffered from religious and ethnic discrimination in Iraq and that he did not feel that it was his home, and requested asylum in the United States. Although he was reunited with his family in Israel, he did not re-emigrate to the US, contrary to his declaration, and he received Israeli citizenship. He and his family shortly thereafter moved to another western country. Shortly after Redfa's defection, Iraqi Christians were not allowed to join the air force per orders from Iraq's then-president. This order was still true until the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, although the commander of the Iraqi Air Force for a time was another Assyrian, Georges Sada
, who also defected.
Redfa died sometime around 1998 of a heart attack.
Fighter pilot
A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained in air-to-air combat while piloting a fighter aircraft . Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and dogfighting...
, of ethnic Assyrian
Assyrian people
The Assyrian people are a distinct ethnic group whose origins lie in ancient Mesopotamia...
origin, who defected
Defection
In politics, a defector is a person who gives up allegiance to one state or political entity in exchange for allegiance to another. More broadly, it involves abandoning a person, cause or doctrine to whom or to which one is bound by some tie, as of allegiance or duty.This term is also applied,...
to Israel in 1966 by flying a MiG-21 of the Iraqi Air Force. In what is considered as one of the Mossad
Mossad
The Mossad , short for HaMossad leModi'in uleTafkidim Meyuchadim , is the national intelligence agency of Israel....
's most successful operations, Redfa's entire extended family was smuggled safely out of Iraq to Israel. The MiG-21 fighter was evaluated by the Israeli Air Force
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
and was later loaned to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
for testing and intelligence analysis. Knowledge obtained from analysis of the aircraft was instrumental to the successes achieved by the Israeli Air Force
Israeli Air Force
The Israeli Air Force is the air force of the State of Israel and the aerial arm of the Israel Defense Forces. It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence...
in its future encounters with Arab MiG-21s. Redfa's defection was the subject of the movie Steal the Sky
Steal the Sky
Steal the Sky is a 1988 HBO movie starring Mariel Hemingway and Ben Cross. The movie is based on the true story of Iraqi pilot Munir Redfa flying a MiG-21 fighter jet from Iraq to Israel in 1966.-External links:**...
.
He was the second of nine children. Like many other Assyrians, his family fled to Iraq as part of the Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
migration from southeast Turkey northwestern mountains following the Assyrian Genocide
Assyrian genocide
The Assyrian Genocide refers to the mass slaughter of the Assyrian/Chaldean/Syriac population of the Ottoman Empire during the 1890s, the First World War, and the period of 1922-1925...
.
After Redfa's defection, a press conference was held during which he indicated that he had suffered from religious and ethnic discrimination in Iraq and that he did not feel that it was his home, and requested asylum in the United States. Although he was reunited with his family in Israel, he did not re-emigrate to the US, contrary to his declaration, and he received Israeli citizenship. He and his family shortly thereafter moved to another western country. Shortly after Redfa's defection, Iraqi Christians were not allowed to join the air force per orders from Iraq's then-president. This order was still true until the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, although the commander of the Iraqi Air Force for a time was another Assyrian, Georges Sada
Georges Sada
General Georges Hormiz Sada is an Iraqi of Assyrian descent, an author and retired general officer of the Iraqi Air Force....
, who also defected.
Redfa died sometime around 1998 of a heart attack.
External links
- Stealing a Soviet MiG, Jewish Virtual Library.
See also
- Viktor BelenkoViktor BelenkoViktor Ivanovich Belenko is Soviet defector and aerospace engineer and lecturer. Belenko was sentenced to death in the Soviet Union for state treason. He was born in Nalchik, Russian SFSR in a Ukrainian family...
- List of Cold War pilot defections
- Have DoughnutHave DoughnutHave Doughnut was the name of a Defense Intelligence Agency project whose purpose was to evaluate and exploit a MiG-21 "Fishbed-E" that the United States Air Force acquired in 1967 from Israel. Israel acquired the aircraft on August 16, 1966, when Iraqi Air Force pilot Capt...