Uri Sagi ( he, אורי שגיא; born 5 August 1943) is an Israeli retired general who held several prominent posts including commander of the

Golani Brigade The 1st "Golani" Brigade ( he, חֲטִיבַת גּוֹלָנִי) is an Israeli military infantry brigade that is subordinated to the 36th Division and traditionally associated with the Northern Command. It is one of the five infantry brigade ...

and chief of the IDF's Military Intelligence Directorate. In 2000–2003 Uri Sagi was the CEO of

Mekorot Mekorot ( he, מקורות, lit. "Sources") is the national water company of Israel and the country's top agency for water management. Founded in 1937, it supplies Israel with 90% of its drinking water and operates a cross-country water supply ne ...

, Israel's national water company.

Biography

Uri Sagi was born in

Kiryat Bialik Kiryat Bialik ( he, קִרְייַת בְּיַאלִיק, also Qiryat Bialik) is a city in the Haifa District in Israel. It is one of the five Krayot suburbs to the north of Haifa. In it had a population of . The city was named after the poet H ...

during the Mandate era, a seventh generation native of Palestine. He is married to Gila and has three children. He had a fourth daughter born outside of marriage who died of leukemia at age 19. In 2012, years after his active military service, Sagi ran for the

Awoda Awoda is a village in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, South Sudan. Location Awoda is located on the road leading south from Aroyo to the B41. The B41 runs between Wau and Deim Zubeir. There is a small airstrip to the southeast of the village. The Aw ...

in the Knesset election. After allegations against him of sexual misconduct were brought before the party leadership in the mid-1970s, he withdrew his candidacy for the list.

Military service

Sagi was drafted into the IDF in 1961 and did his military service in the

, of which he became commander in 1976-1977. He served in the Brigade as a soldier, a

squad leader ''Squad Leader'' is a tactical level board war game originally published by Avalon Hill in 1977. It was designed by John Hill and simulates on infantry combat in Europe during World War II. One of the most complex war games of its time, ''Squa ...

. In 1963 he became an

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

officer after completing

Officer Candidate School An officer candidate school (OCS) is a military school which trains civilians and Enlisted rank, enlisted personnel in order for them to gain a Commission (document), commission as Commissioned officer, officers in the armed forces of a country. ...

and return to the Golani Brigade. In

The Six Day War The Six-Day War (, ; ar, النكسة, , or ) or June War, also known as the 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab states (primarily Egypt, Syria, and Jordan) from 5 to 10 Ju ...

he served as a

company commander A company commander is the commanding officer of a company, a military unit which typically consists of 100 to 250 soldiers, often organized into three or four smaller units called platoons. The exact organization of a company varies by country, ...

in Golani Brigade's 51 battalion and fought in

the Golan Heights The Golan Heights ( ar, هَضْبَةُ الْجَوْلَانِ, Haḍbatu l-Jawlān or ; he, רמת הגולן, ), or simply the Golan, is a region in the Levant spanning about . The region defined as the Golan Heights differs between di ...

. Afterwards he commanded Golani Brigade's

Reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

company during the

War of Attrition The War of Attrition ( ar, حرب الاستنزاف, Ḥarb al-Istinzāf; he, מלחמת ההתשה, Milhemet haHatashah) involved fighting between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and their allies from ...

. Sagi led Golani Brigade's 13 battalion and served as in the IDF's

Operations Directorate The Israeli Operations Directorate (, ''Agaf HaMivtza'im'') is a branch in the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, established in 1999, alongside the regional commands, the air force and navy. Since June 2021, it is headed by Aluf . Tasks ...

during the

Yom Kippur War The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egy ...

. Sagi commanded the

and led a force of officers and soldiers from the brigade in

Operation Entebbe Operation Entebbe, also known as the Entebbe Raid or Operation Thunderbolt, was a counter-terrorist hostage-rescue mission carried out by commandos of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) at Entebbe Airport in Uganda on 4 July 1976. A week earl ...

. Afterwards he commanded the 36th Division, the IDF's Southern Command, the

GOC Army Headquarters The GOC Army Headquarters ( he, מפקדת זרוע היבשה, ''Mifkedet Zro'a HaYabasha'', abbreviated Mazi), is a multi-corps command headquarters created in 1998, which amalgamates the ground forces of the Israel Defense Forces. The current ...

. In 1991 he was appointed as the chief of the Israeli Military Intelligence Directorate. Sagi

retired Retirement is the withdrawal from one's position or occupation or from one's active working life. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours or workload. Many people choose to retire when they are elderly or incapable of doing their j ...

in 1995.

Amir Oren Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...

Former Israeli Intelligence Chief: Netanyahu and Barak Dangerously Stoking Flames of War
''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

'', August 17, 2012.

''The Spy Machine''

In 1998 he appeared in the documentary special '' The Spy Machine'', produced by

Open Media Open Media is a British television production company, best known for the discussion series '' After Dark'', described in the national press as "the most original programme on television". The company was founded in 1987 and has produced more t ...

and Israfilm and shown on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sagi, Uri 1943 births Living people Directors of the Military Intelligence Directorate (Israel) Israeli generals Israeli Jews Operation Entebbe Tel Aviv University alumni University of Haifa alumni