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Where Is
Ron Arad?

•• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

The mystery
of Israel's
\_missinc pilot.

Elizabeth Applebaum

1 1

n Israel, death is too close for
Memorial Day to become a triv-
ial event. Families don't plan a
—Jay of picnics and going to the
mall; instead, they attend services
for family members and friends
who have died in war.
Outside Israel, those wishing to
commemorate Israel's fallen — this
year, Yom HaZikaron begins at sun-
down, Monday, April 19
may
--Want to give tzedakah in memory
of those who died. Another idea is
to consider the fate of those Israeli
soldiers held in captivity who may
still be alive.
Four Israel Defense Forces soldiers
remain missing in action: Yekutiel
Katz, Zecharia Baumel, Avi Feld-
man and Ron Arad. There has been
no accounting of Arad's where-
abouts for longer than any other
member of the IDF.
Who is Ron Arad?
He was born in Israel in May
1958, one of three sons. Growing
7
\ - - - j p , he loved sports, especially soc-
cer and baseball. When he was
1 8, Arad was drafted into the IDF
and became a navigator on a F 4
Phantom with Israel's Air Force.
After the military, Arad began
attending the Technion-Israel Institute

—

-

of Technology in Haifa, where he
studied chemical engineering. Arad
married, and he and his wife, Tami,
had a daughter; Yuval.
In 1986, Arad was called for
reserve duty. On Oct. 16 of that
year, he was over flying southern
Lebanon when, because of mechan-
ical troubles, his plane went down.
Arad, who was navigating, and the
pilot managed to bail out; but
when they landed they were sur-
rounded by Palestinian and Shiite
forces. Arad was taken prisoner by
the Shiites (Israel, meanwhile, man-
aged to rescue the plane's pilot).
There have been sporadic reports
about Arad. A year after his cap-
ture, Arad appeared in a photo
sent by his captors, who wanted to
arrange an exchange for a jailed
terrorist. Later, Arad apparently was

handed over to Iranians,
who are presumably hold-
ing him to this day, either in
Lebanon or Iran.
In addition to Israeli efforts
on his behalf, the United
Nations has become
involved in the case of the
missing soldier. Several
leading businesses, includ-
ing Digital and Kwik Kopy,
also have been supportive
in the search for Arad.
What can you do?
• Express your concern to
your senators and congress-
men.
• Leave a message on the
Ron. Arad homepage at
www.ron-arad.org.il .
• Recite this prayer, which
was issued by the Union of
Orthodox Congregations of Ameri-
ca specifically for the safe release
of Ron Arad and the other Israeli
soldiers held captive:
He who blessed our forefathers
Abraham, Isaac and /Joseph, Moses,
Aaron, David and Solomon, may He
bless, preserve and protect the cap-
tive and missing soldiers of the Israel
Defense Forces. May he rescue them
from captivity and speedily restore
them in peace (then add when said
during group prayer: in the merit of
the prayers of this holy assemblage
who pray for them.) May the Holy
One, blessed be He, show them
mercy, increase their strength, remove
their pain and send them a recovery
of body and recovery of spirit. May
He return them to the bosom of their
families, swiftly and soon. 7

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Detroit Jewish News

63