Mossad, IDF Recover Remains of Israeli Soldier After 43 Years in Syria

After more than four decades, the body of IDF soldier Staff-Sergeant Tzvi Feldman, who went missing in the 1982 Battle of Sultan Yacoub during the First Lebanon War, was recovered from deep inside Syria in a covert operation conducted by the Mossad and the Israel Defense Forces. The operation involved non-Israeli Mossad agents who had been undercover in Syria for years and faced significant risks, including operating under fire, to locate and retrieve Feldman's remains. The recovery was enabled by breakthroughs following the fall of the Assad regime and careful intelligence work, including DNA identification at the IDF’s Genetic Identification Center. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu personally informed Feldman’s family of the return, emphasizing ongoing efforts to locate the last missing soldier from the battle, Yehuda Katz. The mission reflected decades of collaboration between Israel's intelligence and military agencies, demonstrating strategic use of deception and operational skill. There is also speculation that the restoration of a local grave site in Syria may have been connected to facilitating the secret operation.