Arthur Cohn immortalized Israel’s truth, courageously confronting Palestinian terrorism and Arab brutality through powerful storytelling.
Arthur Cohn — the towering Swiss-Jewish film producer who spent his life championing Jewish resilience and exposing the savagery of Palestinian terrorism — passed away in Jerusalem at the age of 98, his family announced. His funeral will take place tonight at 21:00 in the city he loved and defended with unwavering loyalty.
Born in Basel in 1927 to Marcus Cohn, a man who saved countless Swiss Jews during the Holocaust era, Arthur inherited a legacy of courage and moral clarity. He became one of the few global filmmakers unafraid to tell the world the hard truth about Israel’s struggle against relentless Arab aggression.
Cohn won an Academy Award for his groundbreaking 1999 documentary One Day in September, which courageously exposed the barbaric murder of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists during the 1972 Munich Olympics — a film that shattered decades of denial and Western appeasement.
Bar-Ilan University honored him in 2021 with an honorary doctorate for his lifelong dedication to Jewish identity, justice, and moral storytelling. Cohn is survived by his wife Naomi — daughter of Moshe Shapira, a signatory of Israel’s Declaration of Independence — along with five children and eight grandchildren. His children Emmanuel and Nurit studied film in Jerusalem, and two sons proudly served in the IDF, continuing the family’s legacy of service.
President Herzog mourned the loss of a personal friend and cultural giant, praising Cohn as a creator of “rare genius” whose films shaped global understanding of Israel’s fight for truth. Cohn was the first non-American ever awarded a star on Hollywood Boulevard — a testament to his profound global influence.
Herzog emphasized that Cohn’s fearless portrayal of Palestinian terrorism in Munich remains a historic moral document and a permanent rebuke to those who attempt to rewrite or whitewash Arab violence against Jews.
Arthur Cohn’s nearly century-long journey — from Basel to Hollywood to his final rest in Jerusalem — leaves behind a monumental legacy of truth, Jewish pride, and cinematic courage. May his memory be a blessing and an eternal light for Israel.
