Nes Tziona: The Secret History of Israel’s Biological Warfare Institute Built on a Palestinian Ruin
From the ruins of Wadi Hunayn to covert assassinations and toxic experiments—how Israel’s most secretive research center evolved into a hub for biological weapons development and global controversy.
Watan-77 years ago, in the spring of April 1948, the village of Wadi Hunayn—lush with citrus groves—wilted before harvest. Like many Palestinian villages from Ramla to Gaza, it was emptied by Zionist Haganah forces. Its affluent residents, including major traders, were forced to flee following nearby attacks, such as on Sarafand al-Kharab.
After the Nakba, the Israeli colony Nes Tziona absorbed Wadi Hunayn and expanded with the nearby Kfar Aharon. The village mosque’s minaret was demolished and replaced by the “Geulat Yisrael” synagogue, and affluent Palestinian homes were seized—one converted into a psychiatric hospital, others into private residences. Most notable was Abu Omar al-Afandi’s mansion, which the Israeli military science division transformed into a top-secret biological research facility.
Birth of a Weapons Lab: Scientists in Lab Coats, Killers in Disguise
On Sunday, amid Israeli censorship of war news and images of Iranian missile strikes, a video surfaced showing a missile impact near the Nes Tziona Biological Institute, revealing large-scale destruction.
This site—Israel’s most secretive research center—has a long, dark history. It was allegedly involved in developing biological weapons used in the assassination of Palestinian leaders, including Wadie Haddad of the PFLP in 1978. Two Israeli books—Open Account by Aharon Klein and Rise and Kill First by Ronen Bergman—cite the institute as the source of the untraceable poison used on Haddad via chocolate or toothpaste.
The institute’s origins trace back to March 1948 when David Ben-Gurion tasked emissaries with recruiting European Jewish scientists capable of mass killing—or healing—through science. Professors like Alex Kenin led the initial biological warfare units, which eventually evolved into Nes Tziona, officially founded in 1952.
While claiming civilian goals such as vaccine research, its true aim was the creation of biological and chemical weapons. This was later exposed through incidents like the 1992 El Al cargo crash in Amsterdam, which killed 43 and was found to have carried precursors for sarin nerve gas labeled as destined for Nes Tziona.
Scandals, Human Testing, and Global Condemnation
One of the worst scandals emerged in the 1990s: over 700 elite Israeli soldiers were unknowingly injected with anthrax vaccines in a covert program called “Omer 2”, violating international law banning human experimentation. Many soldiers later suffered from chronic diseases and neurological damage.
Other infamous assassination attempts linked to the institute include the 1997 poisoning of Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal and the 2010 murder of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai, both using advanced toxins.
Academic Secrecy and State Control
Nes Tziona operates under the direct authority of the Israeli Prime Minister. Its director since 2021, Shmuel Yitzhaki, oversees hundreds of researchers, many with PhDs, whose dissertations remain classified if tied to military projects—a practice unmatched in any other academic setting globally.
According to Dutch journalist Karel Knip, the lab produces a range of nerve agents, paralytic chemicals, and studies infectious bacteria and viruses under the guise of defense and civilian research.
ترجمة قدس | مصادر عبرية : الصاروخ في نيس تسيونا سقط على المعهد البيولوجي الإسرائيلي (معهد السموم) وألحق أضراراً كبيراً فيه، والاحتلال فرض رقابة ويمنع نشر التفاصيل. pic.twitter.com/ma2PKpO4um
— شبكة قدس الإخبارية (@qudsn) June 22, 2025
Targeted Retaliation by Iran?
As Israel assassinated more than 20 Iranian nuclear scientists, Tehran appears to be retaliating by striking symbolic “brain centers” like Weizmann Institute and now Nes Tziona. Iran sees it as part of a broader war between oppressed nations and hegemonic powers like the U.S. and Israel.
Why It Matters
The Nes Tziona Institute’s veiled history—spanning war crimes, weapons manufacturing, scientific espionage, and ethical breaches—offers a chilling perspective on how the legacy of the Nakba and scientific militarism intersect in Israel’s national security framework.
