Israel retrieves 2,500 items belonging to spy Eli Cohen, 60 years after his execution
The cache includes Cohen's handwritten letters, personal belongings, surveillance photos, forged passports, and official documents—making up the entire Syrian intelligence archive on the Israeli operative.
According to the Prime Minister's Office, the operation was carried out with the assistance of a foreign intelligence agency. The items were presented to Cohen's widow, Nadia Cohen, in a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad Director David Barnea.
'This archive will educate generations and expresses our tireless commitment to returning all of our missing persons, prisoners of war, and hostages,' Netanyahu said, as quoted by The Times of Israel.
Barnea described the recovery as 'another step in advancing the investigation to locate the burial place of our man in Damascus,' reaffirming the Mossad's ongoing mission to account for Israel's fallen and missing.
The retrieved items include Cohen's final will, written just hours before his execution, as well as personal letters he sent to his family while undercover in Syria.
Other recovered artefacts include:
Also found was a thick orange folder titled 'Nadia Cohen,' containing Syrian intelligence surveillance records on Cohen's widow, who had campaigned internationally for his release.
Cohen, born into a Jewish family in Egypt, joined the Mossad in the early 1960s and rose through the ranks of Syria's political elite under the alias Kamel Amin Thaabet. His intelligence was credited with helping Israel capture the Golan Heights during the 1967 Six Day War.
He was arrested and publicly hanged in Damascus in 1965. Despite repeated efforts, his body has never been recovered.
This operation to retrieve his belongings comes just a week after the Mossad and IDF retrieved the remains of Sgt. First Class Zvi Feldman, missing since the 1982 Battle of Sultan Yacoub. According to the report, Feldman's remains were recovered from 'the heart of Syria'.
(With inputs from The Times of Israel)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
3 minutes ago
- First Post
'Impossible to cover up': Iran threatens 'decisive' response after Trump vows to 'wipe out' nuclear programme
Iran has warned it will respond 'in a more decisive manner' if the US or Israel launches another strike on its nuclear sites. The warning, issued by FM Araghchi, came after Trump threatened to 'wipe out' Iran's nuclear programme if it restarts. read more Iran has issued a stern warning, vowing to respond 'in a more decisive manner' if the United States or Israel carries out another strike on its nuclear facilities in the near future. The warning came on Monday from Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in response to US President Donald Trump's threat to 'wipe out' Iran's nuclear programme if it resumes atomic activity. 'If aggression is repeated, we will not hesitate to react in a more decisive manner and in a way that will be IMPOSSIBLE to cover up,' Araghchi said in a post on X. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Araghchi also stressed that diplomacy, not threats, is the only effective solution to concerns surrounding Iran's nuclear programme. 'If there are concerns about the possible diversion of our nuclear program into non-peaceful purposes, the 'military option' proved incapable, but a negotiated solution may work,' he added. The full extent of damage from the US strikes remains unclear. These strikes followed a surprise Israeli bombing campaign, which Israel claimed was aimed at halting Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions. The twin assaults have disrupted nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington that had only recently resumed in April. During a visit to Scotland on Monday, Trump defended the earlier airstrikes and issued fresh warnings. 'They can start again. If they do, we'll wipe it out faster than you can wave your finger at it,' he said. Iran had earlier retaliated with missile attacks on Israeli cities and a U.S. base in Qatar, though Trump previously downplayed the severity of those responses. Just a month ago, fierce clashes erupted between Iran and Israel, with Tel Aviv targeting nuclear facilities and killing top Iranian generals and scientists. At the heart of the standoff remains the issue of uranium enrichment. While Tehran insists it has the sovereign right to enrich uranium, Washington sees that as a 'red line.' According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran is the only country without nuclear weapons enriching uranium to 60 per cent, just below the 90 per cent needed for weapons-grade material. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Iran has repeatedly denied pursuing nuclear weapons and has shown willingness to negotiate enrichment levels, but not to relinquish its right to enrichment entirely. 'No one in their right mind would abandon the fruits of tremendous investment in homegrown and peaceful technology just because of foreign bullying,' Araghchi said in his post. Israel's Op Rising Lion Meanwhile, Israeli forces launched a large-scale military operation, codenamed 'Operation Rising Lion,' targeting Iran's key nuclear sites including Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan. Nearly 200 warplanes dropped more than 330 bombs and missiles on over 100 locations—including enrichment facilities, centrifuge workshops, missile systems, and command centres. US strikes on Iranian facilities Following that, on June 22, the United States carried out its own high-impact strike under 'Operation Midnight Hammer.' B-2 stealth bombers and Tomahawk missiles delivered 14 powerful bunker-buster bombs, severely damaging all three of the targeted nuclear sites.
Time of India
23 minutes ago
- Time of India
Trump says many are starving in Gaza, vows to set up food centres
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday many people were starving in Gaza and suggested Israel could do more on humanitarian access, as Palestinians struggled to feed their children a day after Israel declared steps to improve the death toll from two years of war in Gaza nears 60,000, a growing number of people are dying from starvation and malnutrition, Gaza health authorities say, with images of starving children shocking the world and fuelling international criticism of Israel over sharply worsening starvation in Gaza as real, Trump's assessment put him at odds with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu , who said on Sunday "there is no starvation in Gaza" and vowed to fight on against the Palestinian militant group Hamas - a statement he reposted on X on Netanyahu later on Monday described the situation in Gaza as "difficult", saying his country was working to ensure aid delivery to the besieged strip."Israel will continue to work with international agencies as well as the U.S. and European nations to ensure that large amounts of humanitarian aid flows into the Gaza Strip," Netanyahu said, according to a statement from his speaking during a visit to Scotland, said Israel has a lot of responsibility for aid flows, and that a lot of people could be saved. "You have a lot of starving people," he said."We're going to set up food centres," with no fences or boundaries to ease access, Trump said. The U.S. would work with other countries to provide more humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza, including food and sanitation, he said. White House spokesperson said additional details on the food centres would be "forthcoming."'WHEN YOU GO TO BED HUNGRY, YOU WAKE UP HUNGRY'On Monday, the Gaza health ministry said at least 14 people had died in the past 24 hours of starvation and malnutrition, bringing the war's death toll from hunger to 147, including 88 children, most in just the last few announced several measures over the weekend, including daily humanitarian pauses to fighting in three areas of Gaza, new safe corridors for aid convoys, and airdrops. The decision followed the collapse of ceasefire talks on Nabil from Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza described the struggle of trying to feed her three children. "When you go to bed hungry, you wake up hungry. We distract them with anything ... to make them calm down," she told Reuters."I call on the world, on those with merciful hearts, the compassionate, to look at us with compassion, to be kind to us, to stand with us until aid comes in and ensure it reaches us."Two Israeli defence officials said the international pressure prompted the new Israeli measures, as did the worsening conditions on the ground.U.N. agencies said a long-term and steady supply of aid was needed. The World Food Programme said 60 trucks of aid had been dispatched - short of target. Almost 470,000 people in Gaza are enduring famine-like conditions, with 90,000 women and children in need of specialist nutrition treatments, it said."Our target at the moment, every day is to get 100 trucks into Gaza," WFP Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe, Samer AbdelJaber, told Egeland, head of the Norwegian Refugee Council , told Reuters the situation is catastrophic."At this time, children are dying every single day from starvation, from preventable disease. So time has run out."Netanyahu has denied any policy of starvation towards Gaza, saying aid supplies would be kept up whether Israel was negotiating a ceasefire or fighting.A spokesperson for COGAT, the Israeli military aid coordination agency, said Israel had not placed a time limit on the humanitarian pauses in its military operation, a day after U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher said Israel had decided "to support a one-week scale-up of aid"."We hope this pause will last much longer than a week, ultimately turning into a permanent ceasefire," Fletcher's spokesperson, Eri Kaneko, said on office did not immediately respond to a request for to last week, U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq said, there had only been a "small uptick" in the amount of aid being transported into Gaza since Israel started the humanitarian SAYS HAMAS DIFFICULT TO DEAL WITHIn his statement on Sunday, Netanyahu said Israel would continue to fight until it achieved the release of remaining hostages held by Hamas and the destruction of its military and governing said Hamas had become difficult to deal with in recent days, but he was talking with Netanyahu about "various plans" to free hostages still held in the war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas militants attacked communities across the border in southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking another 251 hostage, according to Israeli Gaza health ministry said that 98 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in the past 24 of the trucks that made it into Gaza were seized by desperate Palestinians, and some by armed looters, witnesses Hamas-run Gaza government said only 87 aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip on Monday, with the majority of trucks looted due to what it described as "direct and systematic Israeli complicity"."Currently aid comes for the strong who can race ahead, who can push others and grab a box or a sack of flour. That chaos must be stopped and protection for those trucks must be allowed," said Emad, 58, who used to own a factory in Gaza WFP said it has 170,000 metric tons of food in the region, outside Gaza, which would be enough to feed the whole population for the next three months if it gets the clearance to bring into the said more than 120 truckloads of aid were distributed in Gaza on Sunday by the U.N. and international aid was expected on Monday. Qatar said it had sent 49 trucks that arrived in Egypt en route for Gaza. Jordan and the United Arab Emirates airdropped cut off aid to Gaza from the start of March in what it said was a means to pressure Hamas into giving up dozens of hostages it still holds, and reopened aid with new restrictions in May. Hamas accuses Israel of using hunger as a says it abides by international law but must prevent aid from being diverted by militants, and blames Hamas for the suffering of Gaza's people.
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Gideon Levy: 'I want to live in a just state'
Why is it important that Jews such as yourself speak out against Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories? Israeli author and journalist Gideon Levy (Courtesy Jaipur Literature Festival) The reason is quite simple and straightforward. I want to live in a just state! As long as occupation and apartheid go on, I will continue to live in an unjust place. There is injustice on a daily basis towards millions of people. Through my work as a journalist, I try to change this. This is not only my right. It is my duty to do so. Judaism places great emphasis on the concept of Tikkun olam. How can Jews seek inspiration from this principle to do the right thing in this contemporary political environment? Tikkun olam means 'correcting the world'. I don't think that I am capable enough to do that, so I do not even aspire to it. My inspiration is more modest. Let me try to correct my own country, which is going in the wrong direction. I criticise ideas like 'Jewish morality' and 'Jewish values'. Let us follow international law without getting into philosophy. Let us stick to moral principles that are universal. Don't kill innocent people. Don't punish a whole piece of land for the actions of some individuals who did something bad. You do not need any concepts. You only need a conscience to do the right thing. Israelis who have spoken out in solidarity with Palestinians have had to face repercussions such as losing their jobs. With the growing fear of a potential backlash, to what extent is it really possible for Israelis to raise their voice? I am the best example of an Israeli person who has raised his voice in support of Palestinians. I live in Israel and I continue to write for Haaretz, the most respected Israeli newspaper that gives me the freedom to write. I have the privilege of being a Jewish journalist. People like me have more rights than Palestinians. I do not take them for granted. 320pp, ₹1936; Verso Books You have also received death threats, haven't you? Yes, I have. I receive them all the time. But that will not change anything about how I think and what I write. Where do you draw your courage from? Well, I don't think that you need much courage. I cannot keep silent when I see what is happening. People who live in the occupied territories face a lot more danger every day. I am only doing my job as a journalist. Even an electrician who climbs ladders to fix wires faces danger on a daily basis while he is doing his job. I do not like to think that I am a very courageous person. What, according to you, is the role of journalists in seeking accountability after the announcement of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas? We have a big responsibility as always. First of all, our job is to give our readers and viewers the whole truth; not opinion and propaganda. Journalists must be professional in their approach. We must free ourselves from the agenda of the government as well as its rivals. How did you end up writing your new book The Killing of Gaza? My publisher thought that my pieces should be published as a book, along the lines of my previous one called The Punishment of Gaza. I liked the idea because compiling the pieces in this form gives readers a concentrated picture of what I have seen in Gaza through the years. I have written a foreword and an epilogue to lay out the context. In India, we don't get to hear many stories of 'conscientious objectors' from Israel who are protesting against apartheid and genocide. Could you tell us about the resistance movements in Israel? Right now, the opposition to Benjamin Netanyahu is very strong, vocal, active, and devoted. There are demonstrations every week. Unfortunately, what's almost totally absent is an opposition to the war and crimes of war. Only a handful of people in Israel are raising their voices against apartheid and genocide. In my view, this is very unfortunate. After the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, it has become harder to talk about what is Israel is doing in the occupied territories. The conversation is more focused on what Hamas did to Israelis. What kind of impact do anti-Zionist organizations in the United States, such as Jewish Voice of Peace, have on the actual situation for Palestinians? You cannot measure the impact of their work but you can see a process that is the outcome of a long-standing activity. Even in Israel, there are small organizations that are devoted to their work. We cannot seek immediate results. Everyone is doing whatever they can. We will see some changes gradually and eventually. Your father fled the Nazi regime to protect himself from persecution. Would you say that this family history helped you empathize with Palestinians who have been forced to abandon their homes? My father was trying to get to Palestine from the Czech Republic with other Jewish people. They were on a ship for months because they were not allowed to disembark in any port. They ran out of food. I cannot even imagine how they survived. Finally, the British sent them to a detention camp in Lebanon. After that, they were sent to Israel. My father felt like a refugee all his life. He belonged to Europe because that's where he was brought up. He did not even speak Hebrew. How do you view the idea of a two-state solution in West Asia? Are we moving closer to that or does it seem far away? In my opinion, it is not far away; it is dead. I don't see it being implemented. There are several hundred thousand Jewish settlers in the West Bank. The two-state solution will never happen. I wish it would have happened. There is no room for it. That train has left the station. There could be a Palestinian Bantustan like independent states in South Africa that were created for black people. Israel promotes itself as a very liberal destination for LGBTQ people around the world. Is this a way of whitewashing its human rights violations? Israel is very liberal. I have no doubt about it. But being liberal about one thing does not give you the right to be so cruel and immoral in other matters. Israel is using its liberal image for propaganda. It is constantly reminding everyone how Hamas treats gay people. Yes, what they do is horrible. But that does not mean that Palestinian people don't have rights. Chintan Girish Modi is a journalist, educator and literary critic. He is @chintanwriting on Instagram and X.
