Jerusalem – Sunday, May 18, 2025

In a dramatic and covert intelligence operation, Israel's Mossad has successfully retrieved a large cache of documents, photographs, and personal belongings belonging to the infamous Israeli spy Eli Cohen from Syria, according to a statement released Sunday by the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The operation, described by Mossad as “complex and secret,” resulted in the recovery of over 2,500 items, including Cohen’s personal documents, forged passports, house keys from his Damascus apartment, and photographs showing him with top Syrian political and military officials from the 1960s.

Also recovered were handwritten notebooks, mission memos from his Mossad handlers, and the original will he wrote just hours before his execution in Damascus in 1965.

Mossad Director David Barnea hailed the mission as a “significant achievement” that may help determine the precise burial site of Cohen, whose remains have never been returned to Israel. Israel has repeatedly requested the return of Cohen’s body, but Syrian officials have remained silent and have not acknowledged the operation.

Four Years of Espionage Behind Enemy Lines

Eli Cohen infiltrated Syria in 1962 using the alias “Kamel Amin Thaabet,” posing as a wealthy Syrian businessman from Argentina. Over the next four years, he cultivated close relationships with influential military and political figures, providing Israel with over 100 intelligence reports about troop deployments, secret government meetings, and military operations in the Golan Heights.

He was eventually captured by Syrian intelligence in January 1965, and following a brief trial, was executed publicly in Marjeh Square, Damascus, on May 18, 1965. His body was left hanging for hours as a public deterrent.

In the 1990s, Israel conditioned resuming peace talks with Syria on the return of Cohen’s remains. However, reports suggest that Syrian authorities lost track of the burial site after moving the body multiple times to avoid a potential Israeli recovery attempt.

To date, the Syrian government has not commented on the Israeli announcement or confirmed whether the Mossad’s operation breached Syrian territory.