Copyright 2000 Jerusalem Post
Jerusalem Post
January 21 2000
Op-Ed: MIA's -- THE HUMAN ELEMENT OF PEACE
BYLINE: Gerald M. Steinberg
For decades, Israelis viewed Syria as the most hostile and implacable of
the bordering Arab states. The Syrian record includes the shelling of
civilians below the Golan Heights prior to 1967, and the torture of
captured Israeli soldiers (some chose to die by their own hands rather than
face Syrian captivity). While other Arab states exchanged captured spies
with Israel, Eli Cohen was hanged in the center of Damascus.
Beyond settling the issues of borders, water, security, etc., if relations
are to improve, the Syrian government and society must first demonstrate
that the old attitudes have changed fundamentally. Handshakes and a change
in body language are important, as is an end to the propaganda and crude
anti-Semitism in the official media. However, to be convincing, more is
required.
In addition to returning the body of Eli Cohen, the most important
confidence building measures relate to resolving the questions regarding
Israeli soldiers missing in action.
Syria is responsible for the fates of Zecharia Baumel, Zvi Feldman, Yehuda
Katz, and, in part, for Ron Arad. These four soldiers have been missing for
many years, and during this time, the Assad government has turned its back
on all humanitarian requests for help.
Baumel, Feldman, and Katz were captured in the Lebanon War on June 11
1982, during the battle of Sultan Yaqub. A few hours later, they were
driven on an open flatbed truck through the central streets of Damascus.
Dean Brelis, who reported for Time Magazine, reported that "the Israeli
crew looked exhausted, downcast, typically combat fatigued. When the crowd
surged around them, taunting, they looked frightened..." The Associated
Press noted that when the truck stopped, "The Syrian soldiers shouted
slogans and witnesses said they identified their prisoners as the Israeli
tank crew." Immediately afterwards, they disappeared.
The Syrian government has made a number of efforts to "close" the cases of
these soldiers. Three weeks after the battle, they claimed that their
bodies had been buried in the Jewish cemetery in Damascus. The Red Cross
examined the remains, and determined that the bodies were not those of the
three missing soldiers. (However, one of the dead was identified as Zohar
Lifshitz, who had commanded Yehuda Katz's tank.)
Many years later, in December 1993, PLO head Yassir Arafat suddenly turned
over half of Zachary Baumel's army name tag, but without providing any
details. The source of this vital piece of information, and the location of
the other half of the name tag, and of Baumal, remain hidden. Although
relations between the Syrian and Palestinian leaders are far from cordial,
they seem to be working together to hide information regarding these
captured prisoners of war.
The key remains in Damascus, and in April 1994, French President Jacques
Chirac revealed that the Prime Minister of Lebanon had told him "in no
uncertain terms that only Assad knows what happened to the [Israeli POWs]".
The responsibility of Syria in the case of Ron Arad is less direct, but
the Assad regime is clearly in a position to help locate the missing
Israeli Air Force navigator. Arad was shot down over Lebanon in October
1986, and he parachuted safely to the ground. Efforts to rescue him
failed, and he was captured. One year later, his family received a letter
and photo from him, but then the trail disappeared. His captors reportedly
"sold" Arad to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, and may have been kept in
the Iranian Embassy in Beirut before being sent to Iran.
The trail of evidence points to Iran and its agents and allies, and these
groups are primarily responsible for accounting, and hopefully releasing
Arad. However, Lebanon is a Syrian "protectorate", and if the Assad regime
wants something, no obstacles are placed in its path.
Iran is also a close Syrian ally, and Iranian planes use a special runway
at the Damascus airport to supply weapons to Hizbollah. During the long
Iran-Iraq war, Damascus was the only Arab capital to side with Teheran.
Syrian weapons and spare parts were crucial in preventing the defeat of
Iran. If Assad was so inclined, he could certainly ask his Iranian friends
to cooperate in resolving the case of Ron Arad. And if past debts were not
enough to gain Iranian cooperation, Syria could find a number of pressure
points and sources of leverage to gain the needed assistance.
Jewish tradition and the basic elements of common humanity require that
every effort continue to be made to return the captured soldiers. Unless
otherwise proven, we must assume that they are still alive. Indeed, other
people have "disappeared" for long periods in Syria. The International
Coalition for Missing Israeli Soldiers reports that "Historically, the
Syrians have held people in this manner until it became profitable to
release them..."
An agreement, not only with Israel, but also with the U.S., will only be
possible when the Syrians demonstrate that they share basic humanitarian
values. If Mr. Assad wants to get into the game, full cooperation in
determining the fate of the Israeli POWs is a fundamental prerequisite.
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Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg
Director, Program on Conflict Resolution
Political Studies, Bar Ilan University
Ramat Gan, Israel