Latest news with #NadiaCohen
CBS News
20-05-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Possessions of Israel's most famous spy recovered — 60 years after he was executed in Syria
Israel has retrieved thousands of items belonging to the country's most famous spy after a covert operation in Syria. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared some of the 2,500 items from the Syrian archive relating to Eli Cohen, an Israeli spy who infiltrated the political echelon in Syria, with Cohen's widow. Sunday marked 60 years since Cohen was hanged in a square in Damascus. The items recently spirited into Israel include documents, recordings, photos, and items collected by Syrian intelligence after his capture in January 1965, letters in his own handwriting to his family in Israel, photographs of his activity during his operational mission in Syria and personal objects that were taken from his home after his capture. Among the items recovered was a handwritten will penned by Cohen hours before his execution, Agence France-Presse reported. Suitcases of items brought to Israel included worn folders stuffed with handwritten notes, keys to his apartment in Damascus, passports and false identification documents, missions from the Mossad to surveil specific people and places, and documentation of all the efforts of his widow, Nadia Cohen, begging world leaders for his release from prison. In this undated photo released by the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, identity documents of Eli Cohen are displayed. Israeli Prime Minister's Office via AP A Syrian government spokesperson did not immediately respond to a Reuters news agency request for comment on how the items had been retrieved from Syria. Cohen, who was born in Egypt to a Jewish family, was sent by Mossad to Syria, where he posed as a Syrian businessman named Kamal Amin Taabet, the BBC reported. After befriending influential political, business and military figures, he was able to obtain secret information, which he passed back to Israel. Cohen's success in Syria was one of the Mossad spy agency's first major achievements, and the top-secret intelligence he obtained is widely credited with helping Israel prepare for its swift victory in the 1967 Middle East War. Eli Cohen managed to forge close contacts within the political and military hierarchy of Israel's archenemy in the early 1960s, ultimately rising to become a top adviser to Syria's defense minister. In 1965, Cohen was caught radioing information to Israel. He was tried and hanged in a Damascus square on May 18, 1965. His remains have yet to be returned to Israel, where he is regarded as a national hero. Isreal previously recovered a watch belonging to Cohen from Syria, the BBC reported in 2018. Details of how Israel got hold of the watch were not disclosed, other than it was returned "in a special Mossad operation." In 2019, actor Sacha Baron Cohen portrayed Eli Cohen (no relation) in a six-episode Netflix series called "The Spy." "We conducted a special operation by the Mossad, by the State of Israel, to bring his (Eli Cohen's) archive, which had been in the safes of the Syrian intelligence for 60 years," Netanyahu told Nadia Cohen on Sunday in Jerusalem. Ahead of viewing the items, Nadia Cohen told Netanyahu that the most important thing was to bring back Cohen's body. Netanyahu said Israel was continuing to work on locating Cohen's body. Last week, Israel recovered the body of an Israeli soldier from Syria who had been missing for more than four decades, after he was killed during a clash with Syrian forces in Lebanon in 1982. "Eli is an Israeli legend. He's the greatest agent Israeli intelligence has had in the years the state existed. There was no one like him," Netanyahu said.
Al Arabiya
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
60 years after he was hanged, Israel recovers Syrian archive belonging to Eli Cohen
Israel has retrieved thousands of items belonging to the country's most famous spy after a covert operation in Syria. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared some of the 2,500 items from the Syrian archive relating to Eli Cohen, an Israeli spy who infiltrated the political echelon in Syria, with Cohen's widow. Sunday marked 60 years since Cohen was hanged in a square in Damascus. The items recently spirited into Israel include documents, recordings, photos, and items collected by Syrian intelligence after his capture in January 1965, letters in his own handwriting to his family in Israel, photographs of his activity during his operational mission in Syria and personal objects that were taken from his home after his capture. Suitcases of items brought to Israel included worn folders stuffed with handwritten notes, keys to his apartment in Damascus, passports and false identification documents, missions from the Mossad to surveil specific people and places, and documentation of all the efforts of his widow, Nadia Cohen, begging world leaders for his release from prison. Cohen's success in Syria was one of the Mossad spy agency's first major achievements, and the top-secret intelligence he obtained is widely credited with helping Israel prepare for its swift victory in the 1967 Middle East War. Eli Cohen managed to forge close contacts within the political and military hierarchy of Israel's archenemy in the early 1960s, ultimately rising to become a top adviser to Syria's defense minister. In 1965, Cohen was caught radioing information to Israel. He was tried and hanged in a Damascus square on May 18, 1965. His remains have yet to be returned to Israel, where he is regarded as a national hero. In 2019, actor Sacha Baron Cohen portrayed Eli Cohen (no relation) in a six-episode Netflix series called 'The Spy.' 'We conducted a special operation by the Mossad, by the State of Israel, to bring his (Eli Cohen's) archive, which had been in the safes of the Syrian intelligence for 60 years,' Netanyahu told Nadia Cohen on Sunday in Jerusalem. Ahead of viewing the items, Nadia Cohen told Netanyahu that the most important thing was to bring back Cohen's body. Netanyahu said Israel was continuing to work on locating Cohen's body. Last week, Israel recovered the body of an Israeli soldier from Syria who had been missing for more than four decades, after he was killed during a clash with Syrian forces in Lebanon in 1982. 'Eli is an Israeli legend. He's the greatest agent Israeli intelligence has had in the years the state existed. There was no one like him,' Netanyahu said.
Indian Express
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Israel retrieves 2,500 items belonging to spy Eli Cohen, 60 years after his execution
In a secret operation spanning decades, Israel's Mossad has recovered some 2,500 personal and intelligence-related items belonging to the legendary Israeli spy Eli Cohen, 60 years after his execution in Damascus. The Prime Minister's Office announced the operation on Sunday, coinciding with the anniversary of Cohen's hanging on May 18, 1965. 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)
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Sixty-years after he was publicly hanged, Israel's most famous spy's belongings are returned from Syria - but it's not what his family wants
Israel has retrieved thousands of items belonging to the country's most famous spy after a covert operation in Syria, but it's not what his family wanted. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared some of the 2,500 items from the Syrian archive relating to Eli Cohen, an Israeli spy who infiltrated the political echelon in Syria, with Cohen's widow. Sunday marked 60 years since Cohen was hanged in a square in Damascus. But his remains have yet to be returned to Israel, where he is regarded as a national hero. The items recently spirited into Israel include documents, recordings, photos, and items collected by Syrian intelligence after his capture in January 1965, letters in his own handwriting to his family in Israel, photographs of his activity during his operational mission in Syria and personal objects that were taken from his home after his capture. Suitcases of items brought to Israel included worn folders stuffed with handwritten notes, keys to his apartment in Damascus, passports and false identification documents, missions from the Mossad to surveil specific people and places, and documentation of all the efforts of his widow, Nadia Cohen, begging world leaders for his release from prison. Cohen's success in Syria was one of the Mossad spy agency's first major achievements, and the top-secret intelligence he obtained is widely credited with helping Israel prepare for its swift victory in the 1967 Middle East War. Eli Cohen managed to forge close contacts within the political and military hierarchy of Israel's archenemy in the early 1960s, ultimately rising to become a top adviser to Syria's defense minister. He was working under deep cover as an Argentinian-Syrian businessman called Amin Thaabet. Although his main task was to report on military and political developments in Syria, Cohen was also told to inform his bosses about Nazis living in the country's capital. Among Mossad's top targets were war criminals Alois Brunner - the former deputy to Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann - and fellow mass murderer Franz Rademacher. He attempted to assassinate Rademacher with a letter bomb in 1962. From February 1962, Cohen worked his way up Syria's elite, sending coded messages back to his homeland. In 1965, Cohen was caught radioing information to Israel. Spooks from the Soviet Union's KGB agency brought in specialist radio equipment to the Middle East which was able to pinpoint secret broadcasts being made inside Damascus. They found that signals were coming from Cohen's home. Armed men kicked down his door and arrested him. His fingernails were ripped out while he was tortured, before he was hanged in Damascus Sqaure on May 18, 1965. Cohen's body was covered in anti-Zionist slogans and left hanging for six hours. In 2019, actor Sasha Baron Cohen portrayed Eli Cohen (no relation) in a six-episode Netflix series called 'The Spy.' 'We conducted a special operation by the Mossad, by the State of Israel, to bring his (Eli Cohen's) archive, which had been in the safes of the Syrian intelligence for 60 years,' Netanyahu told Nadia Cohen on Sunday in Jerusalem. Ahead of viewing the items, Nadia Cohen told Netanyahu that the most important thing was to bring back Cohen's body. Netanyahu said Israel was continuing to work on locating Cohen's body. Last week, Israel recovered the body of an Israeli soldier from Syria who had been missing for more than four decades, after he was killed during a clash with Syrian forces in Lebanon in 1982. 'Eli is an Israeli legend. He's the greatest agent Israeli intelligence has had in the years the state existed. There was no one like him,' Netanyahu said. In 2019, Israel released two Syrian prisoners in a 'goodwill gesture' after the remains of soldier Zachary Baumel, missing since 1982, were returned. Russia's president Vladimir Putin said the remains had been found by the Russian and Syrian armies, but a Syrian official denied Damascus had knowledge of the repatriation plans or details behind the discovery. Israeli soldiers fought against Syrian forces in a battle in June 1982 in the Lebanese village of Sultan Yacoub, near the Syrian border. Baumel and two other soldiers, Zvi Feldman and Yehuda Katz, had since been listed as missing and presumed killed. The latter two remain missing.
CTV News
18-05-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
60 years after he was hanged, Israel recovers Syrian archive belonging to famous spy
In this undated photo released by the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, identity documents of Eli Cohen are displayed. (Israeli Prime Minister's Office via AP) TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel has retrieved thousands of items belonging to the country's most famous spy after a covert operation in Syria. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared some of the 2,500 items from the Syrian archive relating to Eli Cohen, an Israeli spy who infiltrated the political echelon in Syria, with Cohen's widow. Sunday marked 60 years since Cohen was hanged in a square in Damascus. The items recently spirited into Israel include documents, recordings, photos, and items collected by Syrian intelligence after his capture in January 1965, letters in his own handwriting to his family in Israel, photographs of his activity during his operational mission in Syria and personal objects that were taken from his home after his capture. Suitcases of items brought to Israel included worn folders stuffed with handwritten notes, keys to his apartment in Damascus, passports and false identification documents, missions from the Mossad to surveil specific people and places, and documentation of all the efforts of his widow, Nadia Cohen, begging world leaders for his release from prison. Cohen's success in Syria was one of the Mossad spy agency's first major achievements, and the top-secret intelligence he obtained is widely credited with helping Israel prepare for its swift victory in the 1967 Middle East War. Eli Cohen managed to forge close contacts within the political and military hierarchy of Israel's archenemy in the early 1960s, ultimately rising to become a top adviser to Syria's defense minister. In 1965, Cohen was caught radioing information to Israel. He was tried and hanged in a Damascus square on May 18, 1965. His remains have yet to be returned to Israel, where he is regarded as a national hero. In 2019, actor Sasha Baron Cohen portrayed Eli Cohen (no relation) in a six-episode Netflix series called 'The Spy.' 'We conducted a special operation by the Mossad, by the State of Israel, to bring his (Eli Cohen's) archive, which had been in the safes of the Syrian intelligence for 60 years,' Netanyahu told Nadia Cohen on Sunday in Jerusalem. Ahead of viewing the items, Nadia Cohen told Netanyahu that the most important thing was to bring back Cohen's body. Netanyahu said Israel was continuing to work on locating Cohen's body. Last week, Israel recovered the body of an Israeli soldier from Syria who had been missing for more than four decades, after he was killed during a clash with Syrian forces in Lebanon in 1982. 'Eli is an Israeli legend. He's the greatest agent Israeli intelligence has had in the years the state existed. There was no one like him,' Netanyahu said. Melanie Lidman, The Associated Press
