Israeli MIAs
Template:Short description Template:Pp-extended Template:Expand Hebrew
Israeli MIA are members of the Israel Defense Forces who are missing in action. Despite efforts to locate and repatriate them, their whereabouts remain unknown. Every year, a state ceremony is held at Mount Herzl, Israel's military cemetery in Jerusalem.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
IDF prisoners of war
In the Yom Kippur War 301 Israelis were captured by Syria and Egypt, 232 of whom by the Egyptians, 65 by the Syrians and 4 by the Lebanese. The majority of them were captured in the first stage of that war. Some Israeli soldiers reported after their release about the difficult conditions they faced: they were severely beaten by their captors, sometimes making them unconscious, while many reported that they were being investigated under torture.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Known Israeli MIAs
- Yehuda Katz, an IDF soldier of the 362nd battalion declared missing after the Battle of Sultan Yacoub in Lebanon on June 12, 1982.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Ron Arad, an IDF F-4 Phantom II navigator, was lost over Lebanon on October 16, 1986.<ref name="missing IDF">Template:Cite web</ref>
- Guy Hever disappeared on duty in the Golan Heights on August 17, 1997.<ref name="missing IDF"/>
October 7th and aftermath
Template:See also During the Hamas October 7 invasion of Israel, 251 people were abducted from Israel into the Gaza strip. Of these, at least 23 were IDF soldiers, while the rest were Israeli civilians (both Jewish and non-Jewish), and foreign workers. Seven of the soldiers taken hostage were taken from the Nahal Oz military base, near the Kibbutz Nahal Oz, during the Nahal Oz attack. All seven were females.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> One was rescued three weeks after being taken hostage, the body of another was recovered in November 2023,Template:Efn and the other five were released in January 2025 as part of the second Gaza war ceasefire.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Ynet-2024-01-07">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The remainder of the soldiers taken captive include Colonel Asaf Hamami, the highest ranking officer whose body was abducted, Sergeant Major Muhammad Alatrash an Israeli from the Bedouin community, and Edan Alexander, an Israeli-American citizen.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Alexander was released on May 12, 2025 as a "gesture of goodwill toward US President Donald Trump."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Recovered MIAs and KIAs
The remains of several Israeli soldiers missing and killed in action have been recovered.
| Name | Date Missing/Killed | Circumstance | Date Recovered | Circumstance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arthur Gasner | 20 April 1949 | Killed and body taken to Idna<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref> | 6 May 1949 / 15 May 2025 |
Gasner's body was recovered 6 May 1949 along with the bodies of his fellow soldiers. His body was identified 15 May 2025, having been considered an MIA for 76 years.<ref name=":2" /> |
| Zechariah Baumel | 10–11 June 1982 | Battle of Sultan Yacoub | 4 April 2019 | Operation Bittersweet Song |
| Tzvi Feldman | 10–11 June 1982 | Battle of Sultan Yacoub | 11 May 2025 | Mossad Operation<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> |
| Nachshon Wachsman | 9 October 1994 | Abduction and killing of Nachshon Wachsman | 14 October 1994 | Rescue Attempt |
| Ehud Goldwasser | 12 July 2006 | Operation Truthful Promise | 16 July 2008 | Prisoner Exchange<ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Eldad Regev | 12 July 2006 | Operation Truthful Promise | 16 July 2008 | Prisoner Exchange<ref name=":1" /> |
| Gilad Shalit | 25 June 2006 | 2006 Gaza cross-border raid | 18 October 2011 | Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange |
| Oron Shaul | 20 July 2014 | Battle of Shuja'iyya | 19 January 2025 | ISA/Shabak Operation<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> |
| Hadar Goldin | 1 August 2014 | 2014 Gaza War | 9 November 2025 | Returned by Hamas in accordance to the Gaza peace plan<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> |
Procedure and guidelines
According to Reuben Yardor, a military intelligence leader of the Yom Kippur War, the automatic assumption they made was that all that's known to their captured soldiers is also known to the captors.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Several publicized stories of Israeli prisoners of war were:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Corporal Uri Ilan, undercover soldier in the Golani Brigade who committed suicide in a Syrian prison in 1955, leaving a note in which he wrote, "I did not betray."
- Lieutenant Colonel Avi Nir, fighter pilot shot down and captured during the Yom Kippur War, died in captivity without revealing secrets to his captors. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Courage, for "[He] was tortured to death by investigators but revealed no information. Doing so demonstrates loyalty and supreme sacrifice."<ref>(The source is in Hebrew)</ref>
- Lieutenant Amos Levinberg, intelligence officer taken captive by the Syrians in the beginning the Yom Kippur War, and gave his captors a lot of information. He was eventually released in a prisoner exchange.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
See also
Notes
References
Further reading
- Template:Cite journal
- Public Law 106–89 106th Congress, US Congress, November 8, 1999
- Template:Cite book