60 Years Later, Eli Cohen’s Voice Returns: Israel Uncovers a Lost Archive of Sacrifice | watch:

In an unprecedented intelligence feat, Israel’s Mossad has recovered the secret personal archive of legendary spy Eli Cohen, 60 years after his execution in Damascus. The operation, revealed by the Prime Minister’s Office on May 18, 2025, coincides with the anniversary of Cohen’s death and offers an emotional and strategic milestone in Israel’s history.

A Hidden Legacy Unearthed

The covert operation retrieved over 2,500 classified items, including forged passports, surveillance notebooks, and Cohen’s handwritten will, from Syria’s security archives. Held under tight secrecy for decades, these artifacts trace the final months of Cohen’s extraordinary undercover life and the brutal final chapter that ended with his 1965 hanging.

Among the documents were keys to his Damascus apartment, rare photographs with Syrian officials, and a copy of his court sentence, along with a note authorizing Rabbi Nissim Indibo to accompany Cohen in his final hours, honoring Jewish burial tradition.

A Hero Remembered

Eli Cohen, born in Egypt in 1924, was recruited by the Mossad in the early 1960s. Operating under the alias Kamel Amin Thabet, he posed as a wealthy Arab businessman and rose to the heart of Syria’s political and military elite.

His intelligence reports, especially those on Syrian positions in the Golan Heights, were pivotal in Israel’s stunning success during the 1967 Six-Day War. His famous suggestion to plant trees to shade Syrian troops unwittingly marked targets later used by the IDF.

Captured, Executed, but Never Forgotten

In January 1965, Cohen was caught after Syrian intelligence, reportedly aided by Soviet signal detection technology, intercepted his transmissions. He was interrogated, tried, and publicly executed in Damascus’s Marjeh Square on May 18. His remains have never been returned, and finding his burial site remains a top Israeli priority.

Mossad Director David Barnea described the recovery as “a mission of the highest moral value,” reaffirming Israel’s vow to bring home all its missing and fallen.

Nadia Cohen’s Fight

The newly recovered archive includes dozens of letters sent by Cohen’s widow, Nadia, to global leaders, pleading for her husband’s life. She attended a presentation of the archive alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad Director Barnea and continues her advocacy for the return of her husband’s remains.