I lived through the whole thing from the day he was taken prisoner. He was my cousin. I contacted the Rebbe when it happened and received a letter with a ברכה. It is part of the ברכה coming to pass that he was brought to קבורת ישראל, a Jewish resting place...
More than that we don't know...Most of the reports now are saying that he was killed in the battle. But back then, the information was that the 3 members of the tank crew, Zachy, Tzvi and Yehudah, were taken prisoner by the Syrians. Later there were reports that they were paraded through the streets of Damascus. That was the last that was heard of them. It is well known that the Syrians were more cruel to Israeli captives than any other Arab country.
When I heard the news today, I relived the whole thing. Yes, the sadness, but the relief that he finally came home...It was almost as if he had come alive again...
And it will be so - with the Redemption, תחיית המתים and the גאולה שלימה immediately. אכי"ר.
Note that the reports that he was killed in the battle may be wrong. According to what we were told then (I don't know if it was ever public knowledge) they were paraded through the streets of Damascus. That's why they found his body in Syria.
He was my cousin. I used to go to their house in Boro Park for Shabbos frequently while I was in yeshiva in NY in the 1960s. I also stayed by them sometimes when I was studying at the Technion in 1971. They were living near Haifa at the time.
Like I said...
When I heard the news, I relived the whole thing. Yes, the sadness, but also the relief that he finally came home...It was almost as if he had come alive again...
And it will be so,