Amnon Lipkin-Shahak dies at 68; former Israeli military chief

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The onetime headmistress of an elite girls’ school fatally shot Dr. Herman Tarnower, her lover and the creator of the famous “Scarsdale Diet.” The killing generated front-page headlines and national debates about whether she was a feminist martyr or vengeful murderer. She was 89. Full obituary
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Often called “Stormin’ Norman” for his legendary temper, the former four-star general is best known as the commander of 1991’s Operation Desert Storm, which quickly drove an invading Iraq out of Kuwait. He reminded America what it was like to win a war and defined the nation’s renewed sense of military pride. He was 78. Full obituary

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Born Thomas Austin Preston Jr., the colorful and quotable Amarillo Slim won the World Series of Poker in 1972 and began promoting the game on TV and in books. He brought the game “out of the back alleys,” one expert said. He was 83. Full obituary

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By Associated Press

Dec. 21, 2012 12 AM PT

Amnon Lipkin-Shahak, a former Israeli military chief revered as a daring commando and admired general before he went on to become a Cabinet minister, died Wednesday in Jerusalem. He was 68 and had cancer.

Lipkin-Shahak’s term as military chief in the 1990s included coping with a wave of suicide bombings against Israel along with the military coordination that accompanied nascent peace talks.

Even while still in uniform, he conducted negotiations with Israel’s bitterest enemies and later in life became a staunch supporter of peace with Syria and the Palestinians.

Lipkin-Shahak oversaw a 16-day military campaign, code-named “Grapes of Wrath,” against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon in 1996.

Born in Tel Aviv in 1944, Lipkin-Shahak began his military service in 1962 in the paratrooper brigade. He was twice decorated with Israel’s Medal of Courage, one of the military’s highest honors, for his conduct in special operations.

One of those operations was a famed 1973 raid on Beirut, in which Israeli commandos rowed in from the Mediterranean Sea to a beach in the Lebanese capital. The group then went on to attack and kill top leaders of Black September, the Palestinian group behind the massacre of 11 members of the Israeli delegation to the 1972 Munich Olympics.

The commandos were dressed as civilians, some disguised as women — including Ehud Barak, Israel’s current defense minister, a longtime colleague of Lipkin-Shahak’s in the military and later in politics.

In a statement, Barak called him an “exemplary example of courage, leadership and perseverance in the battlefield and in the diplomatic battle.”

Lipkin-Shahak rose through the military ranks, commanding elite infantry units and holding several top key positions — including five years as head of military intelligence.

As deputy military chief of staff, he was involved in peace negotiations with the Palestinians under Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. Later, he succeeded Barak to become Israel’s 15th military chief from 1995 to 1998. In that capacity, he negotiated with his Syrian counterpart in failed peace talks between the countries. He also oversaw the partial implementation of the Oslo interim peace accords with the Palestinians, which included a military withdrawal from several areas in the West Bank and Gaza.

Lipkin-Shahak retired from the military in 1998 and entered politics, establishing the short-lived Center Party that joined Barak, then the prime minister, in a dovish coalition. He served as tourism minister and then transportation minister under Barak.

After politics he went into business and joined several organizations that aimed to promote regional peace.

Lipkin-Shahak was a leading member of a group that urged Israel to adopt a peace proposal that called for a Palestinian state in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem — with agreed swaps of territory that would allow Israel to keep some of its main West Bank settlements while compensating the Palestinians with land. Past Israeli governments have accepted such plans, but they have not produced a peace accord with the Palestinians.

He called for reopening peace talks with Syria and also endorsed J Street, the liberal American Jewish lobby group.

Lipkin-Shahak is survived by his wife Tali, an Israeli journalist. Lipkin-Shahak, who was earlier divorced, also leaves five children.

news.obits@latimes.com