A wheat field in Rayak, with the Anti-Lebanon mountain range in the background, July 2, 2025. (Credit: Ali Baalbaky/L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — The remains of Yehuda Katz, an Israeli soldier killed during Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon and the last soldier still missing from the Battle of Sultan Yacoub, have been located and brought back to Israel, the Israeli army said Tuesday evening. The announcement confirmed reports that had circulated on Israeli websites since the morning. Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu subsequently welcomed the news in separate posts on X.
The Israeli army did not provide details on where the remains were found. “As part of an operation led by military intelligence and carried out jointly with the Mossad [Israel's foreign intelligence service], the remains of Yehuda Katz were located and brought back to Israel,” it said. “Following their repatriation, an identification procedure was carried out at the Military Rabbinate's casualty identification center, in cooperation with the army's medical corps and the Israeli police,” the army added, hailing its commitment to “leave none of our own behind.”
“I would like to thank the army, the Mossad, the Shin Bet [Israel's domestic security service] and the coordinator for hostages and missing persons for ... their determined and courageous efforts to bring Yehuda and all our missing persons and hostages, whether alive or dead, home,” Benjamin Netanyahu wrote. He has faced widespread criticism from the families of former Gaza hostages, who accuse him of failing to prioritize their return during Israel's devastating offensive in the enclave.
Sultan Yacoub is a village in the western Bekaa, about seven kilometers from the Syrian border. The Battle of Sultan Yacoub took place in the Bekaa on June 10 and 11, 1982, pitting the Israeli army against Syrian forces. It ended in a tactical defeat for Israel after an armored force was trapped and shelled by Syrian troops. The Israeli army suffered heavy casualties that day, with around 20 soldiers killed and dozens wounded, while several soldiers went missing. Efforts to recover their remains have continued for decades.
The remains of two other missing soldiers, Zachary Baumel and Zvi Feldman, were recovered in 2019 and 2025, respectively, according to Israeli media.
