Mossad and military Intelligence carried out a daring mission deep in Syrian territory to recover the remains of the IDF officer missing since the 1982 battle of Sultan Yacoub.
New details have emerged regarding the covert operation that led to the return of the body of Sgt. Maj. Tzvi (Tzvika) Feldman, an IDF officer who fell in the Battle of Sultan Yacoub during the First Lebanon War 43 years ago and was considered missing ever since.
The high-risk mission was carried out by the Mossad in coordination with IDF Military Intelligence and involved infiltration deep into Syrian territory. Leading the operation was Lieutenant Colonel Y., a former officer who rejoined military service specifically to head this sensitive and complex mission.
The operation took place dozens of kilometers beyond the Israeli border, in a cemetery located in a region previously controlled by the Assad regime. Mossad agents operated on the ground under life-threatening conditions, including exchanges of fire and the presence of armed guards, before ultimately reaching the burial site.
The breakthrough came following five months of intensive intelligence work, which uncovered a rare opportunity to access the area. A non-Israeli team initially exhumed the remains and brought a DNA sample to Israel, which confirmed the identity as Sgt. Maj. Feldman. Only then was the full body recovered and brought home.
Sgt. Maj. Feldman fell in the fierce 1982 battle, during which 21 IDF soldiers were killed and dozens more injured. His remains were positively identified at the Genomic Center for the Identification of Fallen Soldiers, operated by the IDF’s Military Rabbinate.
His funeral is scheduled for Monday in Holon.
This operation marks a poignant milestone, following the 2019 return of Sergeant Zechariah Baumel, also recovered through an intricate intelligence and field campaign. The IDF emphasized that the family of another missing soldier from that battle, Yehuda Katz, has been updated and that efforts to bring him home continue.
