Sword of Gideon
Encyclopedia
Sword of Gideon is a 1986 television film about Mossad
Mossad
The Mossad , short for HaMossad leModi'in uleTafkidim Meyuchadim , is the national intelligence agency of Israel....

 agents hunting down terrorists associated with the 1972 Munich massacre
Munich massacre
The Munich massacre is an informal name for events that occurred during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Bavaria in southern West Germany, when members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage and eventually killed by the Palestinian group Black September. Members of Black September...

. It was first shown on the CTV network in Canada as a four hour miniseries and later on the HBO television network. Directed by Michael Anderson
Michael Anderson (director)
Michael Joseph Anderson, Sr. is an English film director, best known for directing The Dam Busters , Around the World in 80 Days and Logan's Run .-Early life:...

 and written by Chris Bryant
Chris Bryant (writer)
Chris Bryant was an English screenwriter and occasional actor ....

, the film stars Steven Bauer
Steven Bauer
Steven Bauer is a Cuban-American actor. He is known for his role as Manny Ribera in the 1983 film Scarface, and his role on the bilingual PBS show Que Pasa, USA.-Early life:...

 and Michael York
Michael York (actor)
Michael York, OBE is an English actor.-Early life:York was born in Fulmer, Gerrards Cross, Buckinghamshire, the son of Florence Edith May , a musician; and Joseph Gwynne Johnson, a Llandovery born Welsh ex-Royal Artillery British Army officer and executive with Marks and Spencer department stores...

. The film is based on the book Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team
Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team
Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team is a 1984 book by George Jonas describing part of Operation Wrath of God, the Israeli assassination campaign launched after the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre...

by George Jonas
George Jonas
George Jonas is a Hungarian-born Canadian writer and columnist. He is the author of 15 books. They include Vengeance , the story of an Israeli operation to kill the terrorists responsible for the 1972 Munich massacre...

, an account of the incident which has been criticized by some intelligence personnel as fictional, though because of its covert nature is difficult to prove or disprove. In some countries the book was titled Vengeance: Sword of Gideon, from which the movie title is drawn. The story was retold in the 2005 film Munich
Munich (film)
Munich is a 2005 historical fiction film about the Israeli government's secret retaliation attacks after the massacre of Israeli athletes by the Black September terrorist group during the 1972 Summer Olympics. The film stars Eric Bana and was produced and directed by Steven Spielberg...

by Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...

.

Plot

Avner, an adept Israeli military officer is selected as the leader of a Mossad team of expert agents for a covert mission to avenge the Munich massacre
Operation Wrath of God
Operation Wrath of God ,This title was an invention of later writers, and was most likely not used by the Mossad itself. also called Operation Bayonet, was a covert operation directed by Israel and the Mossad to assassinate individuals alleged to have been directly or indirectly involved in the...

and other recent terrorist acts. They are initially successful in their assassinations but as they progress it becomes harder and harder to find their targets and they themselves are targeted with varying success by their enemies. Avner, having lost the majority of his team, begins having doubts about the mission and finally calls it off. He wishes to retire from Mossad and rejoin the regular ranks of the IDF, but his case officer is reluctant to let his most valuable asset go.
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