---
category: Nuclear Scientists & Programs
summary: Crawford recalled that Ben-Gurion's reply was long, evasive, and did not
  agree to the IAEA inspection of Dimona.
tags:
- Person
- Nuclear
- Israel
---

William R. Crawford was a young foreign service officer appointed as director of Israeli affairs by the [State Department](/organizations/state-department/) shortly after [John F. Kennedy](/people/john-f-kennedy/)'s inauguration. He was asked to draft a letter from the President to [David Ben-Gurion](/people/david-ben-gurion/) emphasizing that America's worldwide position on nonproliferation would be compromised if [Israel](/places/israel/) pursued an independent course. The letter also demanded inspection of [Dimona](/places/dimona/) and the right to convey the results to [Nasser](/people/gamal-abdel-nasser/) to prevent [Egypt](/places/egypt/) from beginning its own nuclear research.[^1]

Crawford recalled that Ben-Gurion's reply was long, evasive, and did not agree to the [IAEA](/organizations/international-atomic-energy-agency/) inspection of [Dimona](/places/dimona/). Crawford also noted that his draft of the letter was rewritten by [George Ball](/people/george-ball/)'s office, which held onto it for days, eventually provoking a complaint from the White House.[^1]

[^1]: Hersh, Seymour M. *The Samson Option: Israel's Nuclear Arsenal and American Foreign Policy*. Random House, 1991. Chapter 8.