Remains of Yehuda Katz, IDF soldier who went missing in 1982 battle, returned to Israel

Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

The remains of Israeli soldier Sgt. First Class Yehuda Katz, who went missing in the First Lebanon War’s battle of Sultan Yacoub in 1982, were returned to Israel on Tuesday, the military announced, with Israeli leaders hailing the country’s commitment to bring back every missing or fallen soldier.

The battle, 44 years ago, was a skirmish between the Israel Defense Forces and the Syrian army in Lebanon’s Beqaa Valley. It claimed the lives of 21 Israeli servicemen and injured more than 30.

Katz, a tank soldier, went missing during the battle, along with Sgt. First Class Zachary Baumel and Sgt. First Class Zvi Feldman.

Baumel’s remains were recovered with Russian assistance and returned to Israel in 2019, and Feldman’s remains were recovered by Mossad agents in May 2025.

In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces said that in a special operation led by the Military Intelligence Directorate, in coordination with the Mossad spy agency, Katz’s bones were located and brought to Israel for burial. No details were given on where they were found.

The operation was based on intelligence obtained in recent months, according to the military. The IDF added that the finding was made possible due to a “series of intelligence and operational activities that continued for more than four decades, since he fell in battle.”

Earlier on Tuesday, the IDF said that personal findings belonging to Katz were brought back to Israel during the operation and given to his family for inspection. Meanwhile, Katz’s bones were taken for identification and confirmed on Tuesday evening to belong to the slain soldier.

The military said Katz’s family was updated over the years regarding the ongoing efforts to locate his remains and return them to Israel. “Upon completion of the mission, the family was informed of the return of their loved one. Unfortunately, Yehuda’s parents, Sarah and Yosef Katz, did not live to receive the news,” the army said.

In a statement, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said, “The return of Yehuda Katz, the last fallen soldier from the Battle of Sultan Yacoub, is a significant moment for the IDF and for the State of Israel.”

“Decades have passed, but our duty toward our fallen has not changed. We will leave none of our people behind,” Zamir added.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that he’d supported covert operations to locate the missing soldiers from Sultan Yacoub “for many years.”

He thanked the IDF, Mossad, Shin Bet, and the Missing Persons Directorate for their “determined and courageous work” to return Katz’s remains.

President Isaac Herzog, in his statement hailing the operation, which he said marked an end to “44 years of waiting, pain and longing.”

Herzog noted that he’d long kept a photo of Katz in his office, serving as “a daily reminder of our holy duty to return our sons home and not leave anyone behind.”

“Today I’m thinking in particular of his sister, Prichya, and the whole family,” the president said, in this “painful and emotional moment.”

“The State of Israel didn’t forget him and will never forget its children,” he said.

Defense Minister Israel Katz thanked “all the members of the defense establishment and the intelligence community, past and present, who have worked over the years with dedication and determination and never ceased their efforts until the mission was completed.”

There was no immediate statement from Katz’s family, who have been advocating for efforts to return the missing soldier’s remains for decades.

Rabbi Baruch Vider, the head of a prominent Jerusalem yeshiva, who also fought at Sultan Yacoub, spoke in a video shared by the Ynet news site: “For 44 years, I haven’t stopped praying for this day,” and went on to praise the fallen soldier as “a brilliant boy, a prodigy, humble, with great virtues.”

Times of Israel Staff contributed to this report

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