Born in Vienna , Harmelin was active in Maccabi youth movement and the Hakoah Vienna Jewish sports club . He immigrated to Israel in 1939 under the Youth Immigration program . He was first at Ben Shemen Youth Village and then founded kibbutz Neve Yam . Harmelin fought with the Israel Defense Forces in the 1948 Arab – Israeli War . He joined the shabak in 1949 and became deputy director of Shabak in 1960 , rising to his first term as director four years later . In 1974 , he left Shabak to pursue other interests , including his ambassadorship . He was the last Israeli ambassador to Iran , before diplomatic relations were severed following the Iranian Revolution . He returned to head the security agency again in 1986 following the Bus 300 affair . He retired in 1988
Bus 300 affair
Bus 300 affair
Yossef Harmelin