Ferede Yazezew Aklum (May 15, 1949 – January 7, 2009), sometimes known as Farada Aklum or Ferede Yazazao Aklum, was a

Mossad Mossad ( , ), ; ar, الموساد, al-Mōsād, ; , short for ( he, המוסד למודיעין ולתפקידים מיוחדים, links=no), meaning 'Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations'. is the national intelligence agency ...

agent and

Zionist Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...

activist best known for helping 900

Ethiopian Jews The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...

immigrate to Israel. His contributions helped pave the way for Ethiopian Jews to get to Israel via

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

through

Operation Moses Operation Moses ( he, מִבְצָע מֹשֶׁה, ''Mivtza Moshe'') was the covert evacuation of Ethiopian Jews (known as the "Beta Israel" community or "Falashas") from Sudan during a civil war that caused a famine in 1984. Originally called '' ...

and

Operation Solomon Operation Solomon ( he, מבצע שלמה, Mivtza Shlomo) was a covert Israeli military operation in May 24 to 25, 1991, to airlift Ethiopian Jews to Israel. Non-stop flights of 35 Israeli aircraft, including Israeli Air Force C-130s and El Al Bo ...

. He continued being an activist in Israel following his own

aliyah Aliyah (, ; he, עֲלִיָּה ''ʿălīyyā'', ) is the immigration of Jews from Jewish diaspora, the diaspora to, historically, the geographical Land of Israel, which is in the modern era chiefly represented by the Israel, State of Israel ...

. He died on a trip to

Addis Ababa Addis Ababa (; am, አዲስ አበባ, , new flower ; also known as , lit. "natural spring" in Oromo), is the capital and largest city of Ethiopia. It is also served as major administrative center of the Oromia Region. In the 2007 census, t ...

and is buried in Beer'Sheeva.

Early life

Aklum was born in the Medabay village of the Tigray in

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

to Yazezew Aklum and Avrehet Worku. He grew up in the Adi Worewa village. His father insisted he focus on formal education, so Aklum walked several kilometers to school in

Shire Shire is a traditional term for an administrative division of land in Great Britain and some other English-speaking countries such as Australia and New Zealand. It is generally synonymous with county. It was first used in Wessex from the beginn ...

. He eventually earned a teaching degree at the College of Addis in

. After earning his degree, he became headmaster of a school and mayor of the Indabunga Municipality.

Sudan

After

Moshe Dayan Moshe Dayan ( he, משה דיין; 20 May 1915 – 16 October 1981) was an Israeli military leader and politician. As commander of the Jerusalem front in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (1953–1958) du ...

disclosed Israel was selling arms to Ethiopia, the Ethiopian government began targeting

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

activists. Aklum was identified as a Zionist and fled to Sudan. Arriving without money, he sold his wedding band to contact the Mossad. This led to Mossad agent Danny Limor searching for him in Kharkoum. After making contact, the two spent the next 18 months secretly helping Jewish refugees cross into Sudan and travel to Israel. The refugees had to travel via Europe because Sudan had severed ties with Israel. Aklum finally left Sudan in September, 1980 when it became apparent the Sudanese authorities intended to imprison him for his activities.

Israel

Upon arriving in Israel, Aklum reunited with his family and began studying electrical engineering. The plight of Ethiopian Jews eventually led him back to a life of activism including leading the Association of Ethiopian Jews.

Popular culture

The fictional character, Kabede Bimro (portrayed by

Michael Kenneth Williams Michael Kenneth Williams (November 22, 1966 – September 6, 2021) was an American actor. He rose to fame in 2002 through his critically acclaimed role as Omar Little on the HBO drama series ''The Wire''. He has been described as a "singular pre ...

) in the movie '' Red Sea Diving Resort'', is based upon Ferede Aklum.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aklum, Ferede 1949 births 2009 deaths Ethiopian Jews Ethiopian Zionists Ethiopian emigrants to Israel Mossad People from Tigray Region Zionist activists