Collapse of Assad regime increases hope among families of missing Israelis in Syria

For more than a year, much of Israeli society has been focused on securing the release of hostages abducted by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7 attack last year.

At the same time, the collapse of the Syrian Assad regime has sparked renewed hope among families of missing Israelis in Syria that they may eventually be reunited with their loved ones.

This hope has been reinforced by recent images of prisoners who were released from the Assad regime’s prisons and reunited with their families after decades of separation. 

Nadia Cohen, the widow of legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen, who was executed in Syria in 1965, has been advocating for years to bring her late husband's remains back to Israel. Eli Cohen's intelligence was instrumental in securing Israel's victory during the Six-Day War in June 1967.

“Since Syria’s instability began, I’ve urged Mossad to solve this issue and bring Eli home for burial,” Nadia said in an interview with the Israeli news outlet Ynet.

“With recent events in Syria, I hope Israel understands this is the right time,” she said, revealing that she had received a message from Mossad Director David Barnea, who has vowed to bring home the remains of her late husband.

She recalled that Assad had previously rejected her appeal to return her husband’s remains to Israel.

“He said Eli would return ‘when the time comes.’ Perhaps that time is now,” Cohen stated. 

“I don’t want Eli’s remains left in Syria. The turmoil there could work in our favor. I wish peace for both the Syrian people and us, and hope this opportunity will lead to Eli’s body being returned to Israel so he can rest in peace. After all these years, I too will finally find peace. I haven’t forgotten him for even a moment, and nearly 60 years have passed since he was hanged," she reflected. 

In addition to the cries for help from the Cohen family for the return of his remains, the families of IDF soldiers Yehuda Katz and Zvi Feldman, who have been missing since the 1982 Battle of Sultan Yacoub in Lebanon, now see a rare chance for closure as well.

Frehia Heyman, the sister of missing soldier Yehuda Katz, told Israel's Channel 12, “We, the Katz family, continue to wait for Yehuda.”

Hayman expressed that the recent uprising has brought new hope for some much-needed answers. “We have much hope. We’ve seen Lebanese prisoners released, so I keep checking footage to see if Yehuda is among them.”

Feldman’s sister, Anat, expressed a similar feeling, “The events in Syria are a rare window of opportunity. We hope this will bring Zvika home,” she said. “We’ve always said Zvika might be held somewhere. The state must act now—it’s a national responsibility,” she added.

Israeli pilot Ron Arad went missing in Lebanon in 1986 when his plane was shot down. While initially there were signs of life, including three handwritten letters and two photos of him with a beard, traces of him vanished in 1988. Some reports indicated he could have been moved to Iran, but mystery surrounds his fate. Given Syria's role connecting Iranian military activities in Lebanon, the rapidly changing situation after Assad's fall could also bring new information to light in his case.

Additionally, Guy Hever, a 20-year-old artillery soldier, vanished without a trace from his Golan Heights base in 1997.

He left the base with his Galil rifle, but no evidence has ever emerged that explains his disappearance. While his family suspects he may have been kidnapped and taken to Syria, no leads have surfaced to confirm his whereabouts in the 27 years since.