Ask anyone in Israel today about the fate of the hostages and you will receive a puzzled look in return. Hostages? They have all been freed and returned to Israel… what are you talking about? There are no more hostages! The “Bring Them Home" movement worked! Right? Wrong!
I agree that the hostages from October 7th have been freed/returned and Baruch Hashem for that, but we cannot turn a blind eye to those who have still not returned and - as you read these words - are still being held in horrific captivity. I am referring to Eli Cohen, Ron Arad and Yehuda Katz. Their families are still waiting, and nobody seems to remember… or care.
Eli Cohen was one of Israel’s greatest spies. He moved to Damascus in February 1962 under the alias of Kamel Amin Thabet. He used his charm and brilliance to build relationships with high-ranking Syrian politicians, military officials and public figures. He was so smooth and influential that he was almost appointed Syria’s Minister of Defense! Everyone confided in him and openly discussed secret military strategies with him. Cohen would immediately communicate this information to his bosses in the Mossad, and it is well-known that his inside information was a key factor in Israel’s swift victory over Syria in the 1967 Six-Day War.
On January 24, 1965, Syrian security services broke into Eli Cohen’s apartment and caught him in the act of transmitting information to Israel. He was arrested, interrogated and brutally tortured. Shortly afterwards, he was found guilty of espionage and sentenced to death. On May 18, 1965, he was publicly hanged in Marjeh Square in Damascus.
Where is Eli Cohen today? He should be resting on Har Herzl in Jerusalem but, unfortunately, he is not. Syria has held his body for 60+ years and has, repeatedly, refused to release it. This is Hostage #1, yet nobody is screaming “Bring Him Home" nor wearing a yellow ribbon.
Let’s move now to Lebanon. On October 16, 1986, Ron Arad and his co-pilot Yishai Aviram were sent on a mission to attack PLO targets in Southern Lebanon. A bomb dropped by their F4 Phantom II airplane exploded prematurely causing damage to the aircraft, forcing both Arad and Aviram to eject. A few hours later, an Israeli air force helicopter located Aviram and miraculously recued him, while under heavy fire… but Arad was captured by the Lebanese army.
Ron Arad was taken to Beirut and was then abducted by a faction within the Amal Movement. He was brought to the Beqaa Velley (northeast Lebanon) and held in horrific conditions. In 1988 he was transferred to Hezbollah and hidden in the village of Al-Nabi Shayth. It is unclear what happened afterwards, but the accepted theory is that he was taken to Iran and held in complete isolation in Teheran. Finally, in 1994, Iran returned him to Hezbollah and then the story goes blank… The consensus is that Ron Arad died from lack of medical care and starvation between 1995 and 1997. I must point out that since his fate is unclear - his wife is an “agunah" to this very day - and I still daven for him; Ron ben Batya.
Where is Ron Arad today? If he is alive, he should be with his family and if he is not, he should be resting on Har Herzl, just like Eli Cohen. However, this is not the case. Ron Arad - alive or dead - is still being held by Hezbollah. He is Hostage #2 and, once again, there’s nobody screaming “Bring Him Home", nobody wearing a yellow ribbon.
Hostage #3 is Yehuda Katz. Along with Zechariah Baumel and Tzvi Feldman, Yehuda Katz was captured in the Battle of Sultan Yacoub on June 11, 1982. That battle was a tragic one as 21 IDF soldiers were killed and 30 more wounded. Syria moved 30,000 soldiers into Lebanon to help the PLO and they brought with them Surface-to-Air missiles (SAM’s), anti-tank guided missiles plus Soviet supplied heavy armor such as T55 and T62 tanks. The Syrian forces fought with incredible power, making this one of the most tragic battles for the IDF... and the Syrians weren’t finished when the battle ended. They brought Baumel, Feldman and Katz - with their tank - back to Syria and paraded them through the streets of Damascus, flying the Syrian and Palestinian Arab flags. As you can imagine, the “sweet and innocent Syrian civilians" celebrated the capture of these 3 brave Jews…
For a while, there was a public outcry for their release, and it pressured the Israeli government to act. It took many years, and the young men were presumed dead, but in April 2019 the Mossad and IDF found Zechariah Baumel's body and, in a courageous operation, brought him back to Israel for burial. In May 2025, a similar heroic operation was launched which successfully brought Tzvi Feldman back for burial as well.
Where is Yehuda Katz today? Is his body being held by Syria or has he been handed over to Hezbollah? The answer is unclear, but one thing is certain; the Israeli public has forgotten him. Nobody is putting pictures of Yehuda Katz around the country, nobody is demanding to “Bring Him Home" and nobody - to my knowledge - is wearing a yellow ribbon or pin for Hostage #3.
Of course, I am happy that the October 7th hostages - those lucky enough to have remained alive, and those who died “Al Kiddush Hashem" - are back in Israel. We must thank Hashem for that - it’s nothing short of a miracle. However, please don’t fool yourself into thinking that all the hostages are home since this is not true. Let us keep davening for the return of: Eli Cohen (Eliyahu ha’Kohen ben Sophia), Ron Arad (Ron ben Batya) and Yehuda Katz (Yekutiel Yehuda Nachman ha’Kohen ben Sarah).
May these heroes be returned to Eretz Yisrael so they can receive the respect and honor they deserve.
Am Yisrael Chai!