Interview with Avi Ben Avraham
By Amir Ben David, Ha'aretz supplement
One detail is not surprising in the surprising story about the intention to clone humans in Israel: the involvement of Dr. Avi Ben-Abraham in the project. Who but he is suitable to star in a world-wide media soap opera centered on a fantastic, pseudo-scientific, semi-charlatan program, igniting imagination but also arousing suspicion, whose origins are unknown, a cloud of mystery hovers over it and its future is shrouded in fog; Who but he will appear for a moment out of nowhere, spewing sensational statements with the scent of a secret capsule, only to disappear as quickly as he came, until the next time; Who else but he will tell with enthusiasm: "I came across something that is at the center of global interest. I did not expect such a stormy reaction. And this is just the beginning. Now that I'm starting to be in the public eye, I'm going to find out all kinds of things. You will see, there will be many more surprises during the coming year"; Who else but him would interrupt a radio interview near the beginning on the claim that he was in the middle of a conversation with General Gabi Ophir; Who else but him will declare, in an interview with Channel 2, that the cloning project is the most important project in the history of mankind, and will declare that it is - nothing less and nothing more - the closing of a circle that opened with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; Who else, if not he will rush to Rab Kaduri, so that he can help him promote a pretentious medical project.
It is possible that the media uproar that took place this week would not have reached such proportions if the many interviewees, most of them with doctorate or professor degrees, had known who and what exactly it was about. If only they knew the biography of Dr. Ben-Abraham a little better, maybe they wouldn't have rushed to the TV studios, to talk with abysmal seriousness about the chances and risks in the new project.
I will be an example and an inspiration
Avi Ben-Abraham's previous visit to our districts was exactly two years ago, when he emerged from the unknown and with inexplicable ease placed himself in the 28th place on the Likud list for the Knesset. I then set out to trace his tracks and wonder about our jar. After long conversations with friends who studied with him at university in Italy, colleagues who worked with him at a mortuary in California and activists who helped him in the political race in Israel, he relented and agreed to meet me for a series of conversations that lasted many hours. I have never met anyone with such a strange story.
We were sitting in the living room of his luxurious villa in Caesarea. Across the street, leisurely golfers strolled the well-kept lawns of the local wealthy club. Down in the courtyard the water glistened in the private swimming pool surrounded by stone sculptures. Ben-Abraham invited me to join him to watch the view from the huge balcony and told me that the wonderful location, in front of the golf courses, guarantees that the direction of the air to the east will not be blocked in the future by energetic contractors. He refused to specify the amount he paid for the impressive villa. A wild bet? He didn't have much left over from two million dollars.
Then we got into a convoluted conversation with many twists and turns. From time to time Ben-Abraham demanded that I turn off the recording device and listen to him without recording his words. On one occasion he even demanded that I take the tape out of the tape and place it in front of him, so that it would be clear that I was not recording him. A moment later he suddenly suspected that my Zippo lighter was a small masking tape. In the unrecorded parts, which he agreed that I would reproduce only from memory, he told about a big secret that he was going to reveal in a few months, before January 1, 2000; a secret that he claimed would shock the world and might cause the fall of governments in certain countries. He said that this is a secret matter that he has been involved in for the past 20 years; A hint that various intelligence services, officials from the Vatican, leaders from Asia and American presidents are involved in the story. He promised me that revealing this secret would win me a Pulitzer Prize and world fame. He claimed that it would be "one of the greatest events in history", no less. This week he said to me with pride, of someone who fulfilled a great promise: "Now do you understand what I was talking about with you then? And believe me, this is just the beginning."
Ben-Abraham's involvement in Prof. Severino Antinori's genetic cloning project began only a few weeks ago. According to Ben-Abraham, he has been dealing with the issue for many years, following Antinori's progress from afar and waiting for the right moment to contact him. Prof. Antinori, a controversial Italian gynecologist, caused an international uproar when he presented the project last Friday at a scientific conference in Rome, and announced that in about two years they will start replicating humans. On Sunday it was announced that he issued a statement to Italy's main news agency in which he stated: "Mr. Ben-Abraham appeared the day before the international seminar and said that he is ready to finance the research programs." In an interview with "Yediot Ahronoth" he added: "Dr. Ben-Abraham is not on our lists. He joined only in the last few days and offered his services as the financier of the program and even offered his laboratory in Caesarea. I don't want to speak against him, but I don't want to do business with him." Ben-Abraham was not moved by Antinori's statement. He said that Antinori was simply frightened by the media onslaught. This is not the first time that Ben-Abraham uses this argument.
The partial story, perforated like a Swiss cheese, which Ben-Abraham also tells in fragments, sounds something like this: it is related to secret projects involving genetic engineering. At the end of April, he met in Cyprus with Dr. Fanos Zavos, Prof. Antinori's partner in the replication project. Ben-Abraham claims that he went to the meeting with the delegation of the State of Israel, equipped with a letter given to him by an IDF general, who was also supposed to attend the meeting, but in the end could not make it. Regarding Antinori's quote in "Yediot Ahronoth", from which we can learn that he is not at all connected to the project, and that from now on there will be no connection with him, he says: "This is nonsense. The connection is deep and secret and we navigate it according to our needs. If it was as they write, would he let me run the press conference?"
So why did he say you're not related?
"For various reasons, he changed the story, to take attention away from me."
If you are involved in a secret project, why did you even hold a press conference? You could continue to operate in secret.
"We wanted this thing to go public. This party would have been much less interesting if I had not participated in it and said that there is cooperation between the countries."
According to Ben-Abraham, the cloning project is taking shape in different countries, in different laboratories, and the technology necessary for the success of the project has already been completed. "The first person will be replicated within a few months," he says, "the baby that will be created will be completely healthy from any genetic defect. We already have the technology to extract DNA from the fetus and make sure it is undamaged."
Experts interviewed on the subject this week said it was still impossible.
"They are wrong. They only judge based on the technology that is advertised. There is knowledge that exists that is not publicized."
Would you agree to have your cell cloned?
"Scientifically - absolutely yes."
Why was it announced that this would be done in a laboratory that does not exist in Caesarea?
"It is possible that journalists heard that I live in Caesarea, and were confused and thought that I had laboratories there."
For what, of all the people in the world, do you need the support of Rabbi Kadori?
"So that we can get the backing of the tradition from him, to do these things here. I want to prepare the ground for public opinion to accept this issue."
Bush, Kennedy and Elliott Gould
When Ben-Abraham gets excited, he switches to speaking in a metallic voice and a mechanical staccato rhythm. When we talked two years ago in Caesarea, he did not even hint at the possibility that he would engage in genetic projects in the future. So he still hoped to be elected to the Knesset soon, and his announcements were accordingly. "I am going to do things with eagerness, determination, resoluteness and consistency that is unparalleled," he told me, "I have marked the goal. The goal is to advance the people of Israel. The device, named Avi Ben-Abraham. I will breathe life into the people of Israel. I will bring hope, faith, morality, unity, decency, honesty. There was no equal for the things I wanted to do. Children in kindergarten will sit one day and say: 'We are proud of Dr. Avi Ben-Abraham.' I will be an example, an inspiration, with God's help. I will emphasize the good instead of the bad. You will see."
you? We sat just the two of us in the living room, touching distance from each other. There was no one else in the room. Despite the embarrassment, I hesitantly asked him if he considered himself a prophet. If he receives guidance from God. Ben-Abraham neither smiled nor took offense. He hesitated for a moment and answered: "I can only tell you that towards the millennium, when the eyes of all the nations of the world will be on the Holy Land, on the State of Israel, on the virtuous people, I need, want and it is important that I be in the leadership of the State of Israel."
Contrary to the impression that may be received, it is impossible to categorize Ben-Abraham as another eccentric who wanders the world and is convinced that God has touched his forehead. Many chapters in his enigmatic and unique biography prove that the terrifyingly serious man, who is probably blessed with many skills, but unfortunately not with a sense of humor, was able to gain the appreciation and support of Shem people in a world to whom it is difficult to attribute lack of seriousness or innocence. Too much evidence, which I accumulated during a long and comprehensive investigation, and which was first published in the Pesach supplement of "Maariv" two years ago, proves that Ben-Abraham - who was presented in the Israeli press both in the past and this week as a walking joke and a charlatan - left an excellent impression almost everywhere he went. He also acquired influential friends with an impressive public profile. How do you reconcile these testimonies with what appears to be a mixture of paranoia in the style of "Bags in the Dark", fraud like the heroes of "The Sting" and megalomania in the style of "Citizen Cain"? An enigma indeed.
A little while before he delivered his prophetic speech in my ears, we were sitting in his bedroom, on the second floor of the huge house where he lives alone, just like old Charles Foster Kane in Orson Welles' masterful film. We watched together videotapes commemorating Ben-Abraham at various events, in the company of key figures in politics and the global economy.
I saw him at a lunch held in '96 in Hong Kong, in the company of Asian millionaires, the former president of the United States, George Bush, and his former health minister, Louis Sullivan. Ben-Abraham opened the event, which was designed to raise funds for the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta. He was one of the trustees of this academic institution, which Lewis Sullivan founded and presides over. Then Sullivan gave a short speech in which he warmly thanked Ben-Abraham, praised his work in the ears of the distinguished participants and told them about Ben-Abraham's biotechnology company, which is developing a new vaccine. He said he was particularly proud of the connection between his university's laboratories and Ben-Abraham's company, which is developing "very promising medical technologies." Human replication was not mentioned there.
Dr. Lewis Sullivan is not a man whose opinion can be underestimated. He served as the Minister of Health of the United States between the years 93-89. He graduated from medical school with honors in 58 and led a brilliant career that was combined with public activity for minorities in the United States, earning him no less than 47 honorary degrees and dozens of awards. He was a member of the boards of directors of many companies, the most prominent of which is General Motors. In short: he is a serious man, who greatly appreciates Ben-Abraham and cherishes his abilities. On the other hand, he was then a senior partner in a biotechnology company called "Ben-Abraham Technologies", so he had a certain personal interest.
Sullivan was also present at another event, which took place in the luxurious palace of an American baroness of Italian descent named Sandra Fortenova. It was a dinner where many guests celebrated Ben-Abraham's 39th birthday, in November 96. One of the participants, the Jewish multi-millionaire from Hong Kong Michael Kadori, told those present - including ambassadors, businessmen, doctors and professors - about his friendship with Avi Ben-Abraham, for the wonderful medical assistance he provided to one of his family members and for the great appreciation he has for him.
In another tape, Ben-Abraham is seen being greeted by members of the Kennedy family, who have arrived at the home of his sister, Tiki Belkin, in California. It was an event that Ben-Abraham organized for the benefit of Kathleen Kennedy, who was then running for a seat in Congress. She arrived by helicopter with her mother, Ethel Kennedy, the widow of the assassinated Robert Kennedy. Among those present at the cocktail party were the actors David Saul (Hutch from "Starsky and Hutch") and Elliott Gold. It was evident that all the guests knew Ben-Abraham well and came to the place thanks to him.
"This World" Man of the Year
If there is anything that disturbs Ben-Abraham's peace of mind, it is that the Israeli press will tamper with his actions, treat him with disdain and defame his name. It is no coincidence that this week he hastened to announce that he would file a defamation lawsuit "of one hundred million dollars, by Israel's best lawyers" against anyone who dares to defame his name. It is no coincidence that he ended his election manifesto, which was distributed among Likud activists ahead of the preliminary elections for the movement's list in 99, with the statement: "The left-wing media does not want us to have such a person in the Knesset. They think that intelligence should only be on the left. We will not give them! We will admit Dr. Avi Ben-Abraham to the Knesset against their noses and anger!"
His suspicion is understandable. His attitude towards the Israeli press is derived from his previous, traumatic encounters with its representatives. On September 8, 76, "HaOlam Haza" reported to Israeli readers for the first time about an 18-year-old young man from the Neve Amal neighborhood in Herzliya, who managed to complete a doctorate in medicine in Italy in just two years. The weekly, which was at the height of its power at the time, began to investigate the story after various newspapers in Europe reported with admiration about an incredible genius, who was defined as "the most intelligent person in the world", and who was the youngest man in history to be qualified by a medical school. "To the skeptic Israeli ears, the story may sound like a classic fabric story," wrote "Ha'Olam Hez", "a matter that should be treated with an extreme degree of suspicion." It sounds too wonderful to be true."
Indeed, the newspaper's investigation brought up interesting findings. The official documents did prove that Ben-Abraham won the coveted title after two years, a miraculous achievement by all accounts. However, Israeli students who studied at the University of Perugia in Italy at that time, and were quoted in "This World" without their names being mentioned, said that they hardly saw him in the study halls. They alluded to a special relationship forged between him and Professor Emilio Terbucci, who was one of the most important figures in Milan's academic world in those years, and who supposedly helped Ben-Abraham successfully pass the exams. "The suspicion of the Israeli students turned into complete astonishment, when they learned at the beginning of the year that my father passed all the exams and was awarded a doctorate in medicine," wrote "HaOlam Heza". "The affair became the talk of the day. Many versions and gossip stories circulated those days in Milan, and included various speculations about the form and manner in which my father received his doctorate."
"This World" also checked Ben-Abraham's family background and discovered that he is a member of the Makhlouf family that immigrated from Iraq in the early XNUMXs and settled in the Neve Amal slum in Herzliya. The father of the family, Avinoam, a trade teacher, changed his name to Ben-Abraham and was determined to give his five children an education that would advance them in life. Avinoam's mother, Rachel, was quoted in "This World" as saying: "Avinoam wanted us to be a special and fine race. He decided that his children would be geniuses."
It was Avinoam ben Avraham who, following the mocking publication in "Olam Hez", was called upon to convince the weekly that his son was indeed a genius. He pressured the members of the editorial board and came up with various proofs, which caused the newspaper to publish a slightly different story a week later, under the title "The Genius from Milan".
"Additional documents that were discovered for the first time this week, written and oral confirmations, leave no room for any doubt: Avi ben-Abraham of Herzliya was recognized as a genius by the greatest scientists in Italy," concluded "Ha-Olam Haza" the affair and expanded to do when he chose the young man for Man of the Year in Medicine for the year 1976. 11 years later, the Guinness Book of Records also recognized the achievement and stated that "Avi Ben-Abraham is the youngest man in history to receive a doctorate in medicine."
On the other hand, and in the case of Ben-Abraham there are always two sides if not more, he contributes quite a bit to the media's suspicion towards him. He hates journalists and is afraid of them, but also very much wants to gain recognition. It is not by chance that he is proud, on almost every occasion, of the fact that he was crowned the "Man of the Year" in medicine of "This World" for the year 76. Over the years, the name of the newspaper was dropped, and the title simply became "Man of the Year in Israel". In the few interviews he gave to foreign newspapers, he said, to illustrate the magnitude of the achievement, that "This World" is the Israeli equivalent of "Time" magazine.
The confusion in relation to him increases the deeper we go to check his biography. On the one hand, as mentioned, it turns out that he is indeed blessed with an enviable list of acquaintances and friends, although it is difficult to understand from him what exactly he did to win their sympathy. On the other hand, it turns out that some of his stories are not accurate.
Thus, for example, he often told about the special relationship he had with the former president of the country, Prof. Ephraim Katzir. To his colleagues in the United States he described Katzir as a "spiritual guide". He told me that thanks to a harvest and his "moral blessing" he left the country to study in Italy. This week, Dalia Yairi and Brino Zrur, who interviewed him on Channel XNUMX, urged him to call Ephraim Katzir and get his opinion on him. Except that harvest, what to do, hardly knows him. "I mostly know his sister and his father," he told me two years ago, "I hardly know him. I said hello to him once or twice, that's all. When he was young, he and his sister came to me as gifted children and asked me what they should do. He was good at math, so I suggested he study physics. I advised it to dozens of students."
The honor of former President Katzir in his place is laid, but Ben-Abraham continued to insist, and used his favorite argument: "He introduced me and my sister to Tel Aviv University and wrote letters of recommendation for us, and we were in deep contact with him. Maybe now he denies it. Maybe you scared him. It seems to me that he is trying to humble the relationship so that it will be less of a part of the article."
He wanted to be the president of the country
After starring for a while on the standard Gaon Tovar, Ben-Abraham disappeared from the public eye for five years, and reappeared at the wedding of Daniel Gaon, daughter of millionaire Nissim Gaon, held at the Naga Hilton Hotel in Geneva. This was the first time that Ben-Abraham (who was, it is important to remember, only 24 years old) hinted that he was involved in some secret and complicated matter that he could not elaborate on, but which he claimed involved various intelligence agencies.
That's when he also began to use the infatuation technique, which included showing his photos with various famous people - international leaders, generals, artists and athletes - and impressive documents, testifying to his extensive connections. The journalist Eli Tabor, who has been following Ben Avraham's story since his days in the "Olam Heza" network, published two stinging articles in Yediot Ahronoth at the time, in which he revealed that Ben Avraham used to hire a photographer who captured him shaking the hands of celebrities at various conferences, and later was Shows these photos to other celebrities to convince them of his industry connections. Ben-Abraham denied then and also denied the story in my ears. The videotapes in his possession indicate that at least some of the celebrities with whom he has photographed in recent years - including President Bush Sr., members of the Kennedy family and the millionaire Kaduri - knew him well.
Be that as it may, his behavior in Geneva in 81 and later also in Israel sometimes makes people feel uncomfortable, and adds to the bewilderment that arises in the face of his statements about the security secret kept with him. Aharon Ozan, who was the Minister of Labor and Welfare in '81, remembered his meeting with Ben-Abraham this way: "He came to me in Geneva with his sister. He showed me pictures of himself with Nixon and Ford, and all kinds of articles and things like that, and he wanted to be the president of the country, or something like that. It doesn't sound serious. He showed the pictures and explained his greatness and that he knows the whole world. I immediately realized it was nothing serious. I don't think that a serious person, who has a high educational burden and has achievements of one kind or another in all kinds of areas, will come to a person like me and tell him, 'I want to be a member of the Knesset.' A person should have serious conversations, say what and who and what he can contribute, and only then say what he wants. But this - he immediately opens the suitcase and takes out all kinds of pictures, big and small, and explains to me that he met it and talked to it. Well, I've seen enough of these in my life."
Former Member of Knesset from Likud, Yitzhak Peretz, who was present at the wedding of Gaon's daughter, also remembered very well the meeting with the 24-year-old Ben-Abraham: he told all kinds of stories. He then spoke about something that the whole world will be puzzled about for some time to come, something in the field of physics, and said that he is being searched for and is being pursued by all kinds of enemies, and that he needs to hide, so he cannot say all the things. He would always go and bring documents, as if to confirm what he was saying."
"He wanted to be the president of the country," former Knesset member Aharon Abu-Hatzira also recalled. "He or his brother talked about him, that we would run him for president of the country. Messengers came to me and told me that he was a great genius. It was a curiosity for me and that's it. To offer himself for the president of the country at the age he was then, surely it was a curiosity. For at least a year or two it was constantly unfolding that he wanted to be the president of the country, a minister or a member of the Knesset. He or his brother, I don't remember, came to me at the Knesset cafeteria and tried, but found out that it was a waste of time."
I was young and I wasn't worthy," said Ben-Abraham when I asked for his reference to his strange behavior in those days. "I couldn't contribute, and frankly I didn't want to contribute either. I wanted to contribute to myself and promote myself and my family."
What occurred to you, to stand up at the age of 24 in front of Israeli politicians, introduce yourself and claim that you deserve to be the president of the State of Israel?
"First of all, I didn't introduce myself. They introduced me and pushed me, and in all modesty, I didn't think I was worthy and I didn't think I was suitable."
Who introduced you?
"Others introduced me and pushed me."
Then, without warning, he changed direction, as if he hadn't told me a moment ago what he had said: "You should always look far and aspire far." My ambition was always to be in a framework where I could contribute to others, and today this ambition, with God's help, is about to come true."
President of the company for freezing bodies
One of the intriguing chapters in Ben-Abraham's biography was written between the years 93-86. In his resume it is written that he was then "President and Chairman of the American Cryogenic Society". This is a private company that deals in freezing tissues and bodies of friends, for a fee, assuming that one day medicine will know how to revive the frozen. It is an esoteric field, bordering on the world of science fiction, with a small and fanatical circle of fans mainly concentrated on the west coast of the United States. Ben-Abraham told me that even when he was head of the institute he did not believe in its stated goals. He said that he had no intention of freezing his body after his death, and explained that it all stemmed from a certain interest he discovered in those days in the possibilities that open up before medicine, by using very low temperatures, close to absolute zero.
In '91 it was announced that Saddam Hussein had contacted the American cryogenic company and was also interested in the possibilities inherent in the field. According to the records of the company's management meetings, the chairman Ben-Abraham said at the time that the Iraqi ruler's application came before the Gulf War, and that following the war, the handling of his case was stopped. When I asked him about it, he refused to comment and refused to answer the question of whether he had spoken to Saddam Hussein himself. He said that this topic is also related to that great and amazing secret that it is still too early to talk about.
When he left the institute, after seven years in which he headed it, he severed all contact with the members. When I contacted Edgar Swank, who headed the institute, he asked if I knew where Ben-Abraham could be found, and expressed surprise that he had disappeared without a trace. Almost as usual, Ben-Abraham's famous photos with presidents and celebrities are back here as well. "He was our most famous, best-connected president," Swank wrote to me in an e-mail. "We still have pictures of him in our office with the then President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, President Jimmy Carter and Brooke Shields. I remember he was excellent at public speaking. He was also a 'frequent flyer'. In the end he was too far out of the area to fulfill the duties assigned to the company president. Since then we have lost all contact with him."
Jim Yount, who was president of the company after Ben-Abraham, remembered him well and fondly. "I knew Ben Avraham for many years," he wrote to me. "I found him intelligent and capable, a man of utmost integrity. I am proud to call him a friend."
Philosophy professor Charles Tandy, a member of the Cryogenic Institute, went out of his way when I asked him to express his opinion about Ben-Abraham: "I have known my father for almost a decade. We have worked together in various charity frameworks, not for profit, with the aim of promoting various fields of medical research. Dr. Ben-Abraham is an intelligent man, a scientist. But unlike many scientists he has exceptional leadership qualities. His special leadership encourages problem solving and prefers cooperation over conflict. He is a brilliant, creative man with endless potential. I expect him to achieve a lofty goal, which will gain world recognition. It seems to me that he enjoys extraordinary talents in many fields."
Falling into the Likud list for the Knesset
And back from the world of science fiction, to Israel, on the eve of the 99 elections. Ben-Abraham's rapid absorption into Likud, and his relative success in the preliminary elections, was also a fascinating illustration of the way in which significant political decisions are made in Israel, such as the staffing of the ruling party's list of candidates for the Knesset.
It went like this: Tzachi Hanegbi, who was then the Minister of Justice, met Ben-Abraham about three years ago, when the latter came to Israel to sit by the sick bed of his brother-in-law, Amnon Lipsky. Lipsky was a registrar in the office of the real estate inspector at the Ministry of Justice and died some time later from a cancerous brain tumor. The Negbi did not know Ben-Abraham before, but was quickly impressed by him. "He told me that he very much sympathizes with the Likud's positions, that this is the education he received from his youth," he told me, "He showed me all the newspaper clippings about his experiences as a teenager. I got the impression that this is a person who can bring something special to Likud."
Benjamin Netanyahu, who was prime minister at the time, was also impressed and approved Ben-Abraham to run for a place on the Likud list, even though formally, according to the party's constitution, Ben-Abraham was not entitled to do so. "Netanyahu signed with two people: Dr. Ben-Abraham and Dr. Yuval Steinitz," explained Tzachi Hanegbi. "I think he did it out of the openness of a movement that wants to take in people even if they haven't paid taxes for nine months. I don't think he delved into his biography. It's not for nothing that this provision was included in the constitution, which allows the chairman of the movement to do this when there is a case where a suitable person decides to run after the moment when registration closed."
The fact that the Minister of Justice and the Prime Minister supported Ben-Abraham's candidacy, along with a biography that includes an Eastern origin, a childhood in a troubled neighborhood, and what appears to be a great international success, convinced many in Likud to rally for Ben-Abraham's election, even though none of the supporters had the faintest idea what exactly he did in -The last 25 years.
Among other things, members of an inner circle in Likud called "Your Way - Our Way" rallied for his election. Bat-Sheva Hazan, secretary of the "Your Way - Our Way" circle, explained to me how it really works: "I'm surprised that I worked for a man I didn't even know who he was. I knew him as a warm person. I didn't know he was a genius! A person who can talk to anyone. What is eye level, it's unbelievable. I was surprised when I heard he was a genius. He never talked about what he had and what he wanted. What I like is the humble people. It was important to me that a person at my eye level was chosen. He was active in the framework of his genius knowledge, and I in the framework of my minimum, and I met a person who today I simply cannot believe is the person. The whole time he was worrying, I don't even know why he was worrying, so you understand. I know he was helping people all the time. I would never have dreamed, in my fondest dream, that I sat in the Knesset and ate at the Knesset buffet with a man who is a genius. He spoke to me like any other person."
Did you know what he does? What is he doing?
"His field is actually all medical research. Cancer patients, AIDS patients, who have no medicine, unfortunately for us. He saved many lives in Israel, and I will not name families."
Conversations with other Likud activists who helped Ben-Abraham did not bring up any other findings. It quickly became clear that those who helped Ben-Abraham integrate into the top of the Likud list were mostly amazed by the positive general impression he left and the fact that Tzachi Hanegavi was his friend. But the Negbi actually made a reservation: "I'm not his friend. I never went out to hang out with him. I appreciate him and can say that I have a warm relationship with him."
What did you know about what he did in the United States during the years he lived there?
"All I know is from what he tells. He told me that he lived in the United States and was engaged in scientific research. I think his life is like an open book. He is not a disappeared character. He has a sister here, he has parents here, he has a very warm family. I met her. Although he does not live in Israel, it is a fact that he has come to have such a circle of acquaintances around the world. It's impressive. He showed me in his album letters from senators and congressmen asking Clinton to appoint him as a special adviser on AIDS. He showed me several dozen personal letters from US senators and congressmen who are incredibly effusive in his praise. And the Americans are serious people. It's not like here people jump at the buffet and sign all kinds of things, and they only sign so that they stop confusing their brains because they eat exactly. In my experience, a senator's signature is not something that passes to a dealer. There they also have dozens of assistants who check everything and prevent them from slipping. I had many conversations with him. He is neither a charlatan nor an impostor. He is an honest man. He is a sensitive person. He is also very introverted, very withdrawn. He is a very caring person with a lot of desire to make a switch in his life."
I missed a lot. the whole life
Even after hours of interview, Ben-Abraham left behind quite a few question marks. He did not want to explain how he amassed his fortune and was satisfied with the laconic answer: "with correct investments". He did not want to talk about his older brother, Haim ben-Abraham, and firmly avoided any question about him, even though it is clear that the relationship between them was very significant in his life. When he was elected head of the American Cryogenic Society, he told in the company's internal newspaper that his brother is a "super genius" with an IQ of 390, which is considered the highest in history. "Haim is the mind and I am the hands," said Ben-Abraham. "Nobody in the world can beat the brain, and I've seen them all." He claimed to get his powers and creativity from his brother and claimed to fulfill himself through the elder brother's mental presence.
It was difficult to extract clear and precise statements from him also regarding the house where he grew up with his brother and three sisters - Margalit, Tiki and Ronit. It was obviously a demanding home, which demanded that the children excel and quickly. It is also clear that this claim had a mental and social cost. Ben-Abraham spoke of this price, and in the same breath he suddenly switched to confusing statements, full of pathos, about his intention to lead the people of Israel, with virtue.
"I came from a family where education and knowledge were the basic thing in life," he said. "I have always tended to be introverted and study. In the appropriate circles they knew about it from a young age. We had more books than furniture. I received a suitable education from good and humble parents, and I achieved what I achieved through hard work, despite many obstacles. In every field I was involved in I reached the top of the pyramid. To be the youngest doctor in the world you need more than intelligence. Need mental maturity. You have to deal with a bureaucracy that does not allow any person to achieve something that none of five and a half billion people have done before. I did. From a young age, I was spiritually mature and deep."
Did you pay a personal price for it?
"for sure. I missed a lot. I missed my whole life. I missed friends. Everything that a normal person, who lives in a normal way, has, I don't have. But I have a lot of other things. I have no family, I have never married. I miss it very much. I miss friends, I didn't do all the simple and normal things that a person does in childhood. I don't have people with whom I grew up and with whom I grew up."
Were there days when you had a hard time dealing with it?
"for sure. I was never alone, but I was always lonely. I always thought, I always planned and always, my friend, I surprised. And this time I will surprise. I want to remind the people of Israel that we are a virtuous people, that we are Jews, that we should be proud of our Torah, be proud of our uniqueness. It is desirable that the people of Israel know that Dr. Avi Ben-Abraham returned to Israel to serve the people of Israel. point. This is my homeland, and I have a debt to the homeland. I once spoke with a tzaddik rabbi, a great Kabbalist. He told me that my story is like the story of the righteous Joseph, who was taken from here as a child, thrown out of his country and reached greatness and then saved the people of Israel. I am a leader. I was meant to lead."
What is the personal goal you have set for yourself? Where do you see yourself in ten years?
"With God's help, lead the people of Israel."
It has been two years since this interview was conducted. In the meantime, Ben-Abraham deviated from the course he had planned for himself, and instead of saving the people of Israel, he decided to duplicate it. He has eight years left to fulfill his destiny and conquer the leadership. a bet? He will be back. **
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Ben Avraham sets up a lobby for human cloning in Israel
by Tamara Traubman
Dr. Avi Ben Avraham, the partner in the Italian-American team that claims to be targeting the human race, today (Sunday) gave the names of three more scientists who he says are involved in the project. One of them is the German scientist Prof. Karl Ilmensi, who in 1981 published an article in the scientific journal "Cel" in which he described how he and his colleagues cloned mice. However, despite many efforts, no one was able to reproduce the results of the experiment. Ilmansi could not be reached for comment.
Ben Avraham added that he intends to start a lobby organization in the Knesset, which will work to change the law in Israel that prohibits the tribe of Adam. "We don't intend to do anything illegal. Everything will be done in coordination with the appropriate authorities, said Ben Avraham. "I returned from Rome to Israel to build the appropriate connections in Israel with the religious, political and medical levels, so that the group would be received sympathetically in Israel. Nothing will stop us. If it is not done in Israel, it will be done in another Mediterranean country," said Ben Avraham.
At the head of the team in which Ben Avraham is a partner are the Italian doctors Dr. Severino Antinori and the American Dr. Panos Zaves. According to them, they have already been approached by more than 600 infertile couples who wish to clone a baby, and the cloning process (genetic duplication) will begin within a few weeks. Today, Ben Avraham added that they want to use the cloning technology also for "therapeutic cloning", in which embryos are cloned in order to use their tissues for transplantation. However, they have not presented any evidence to support the claim that they possess the technical ability to perform cloning. According to Ben Avraham, he intends to establish a new company for the purpose of cloning, through which the financial affairs of the project will be handled. In response to the question of whether he intends to issue the company on the stock exchange for the purpose of raising funds, Ben Avraham replied: "This could be a side effect, but that is not our goal." He refused to name the exact cost of the project, but said that "it is in the order of tens of millions of dollars". According to him, the budget has already been reached in full, he financed part of it from his own pocket, and the rest from anonymous private donors.
"We are ready to start work", he added. Ben Avraham pointed out that the professor working at a hospital in Haifa had already given his consent to make laboratories available to them. but refused to reveal the professor's name or in which hospital he works. Many scientists doubt the success of the cloning project. "It looks like an attempt to focus on a very painful point for many people (infertility, OT) perhaps to rake in money," says Prof. Hermona Sorek, a molecular biologist from the Hebrew University. "It's a technology that's important to develop, but it's important to develop it correctly, because incorrect development could cause a setback. Science is now at a point where it can help a lot of people, and cases like this only make the public lose faith in science."
* The knowledge site was until the end of 2002 part of the IOL portal of the Haaretz group
