Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a valuable gift from the Kremlin which is meant to boost his standing only days ahead of upcoming Knesset elections.
Putin, in his address to Netanyahu, who flew to Moscow five days before the election, revealed that it was Russian soldiers in Syria who had discovered the remains of Staff Sargent Zachary Baumel, which were returned home on an El Al flight. Baumel had been listed as missing in action since Israel’s first war in Lebanon, in 1982.
At least 20 Israeli soldiers were killed, dozens wounded and six – including Baumel – went missing in the battle near the Lebanese village of Sultan Yacoub in the Beqaa valley.
“Two years ago, I asked you to help us find the bodies of missing Israeli soldiers and you responded in the affirmative,” he said to Putin. “I want to thank you, my friend, for what you have done,” Netanyahu said in gratitude, proclaiming that the two countries have “shared values.” Netanyahu also thanked the Russian defense ministry and soldiers.
On Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry had published a video showing footage of the handover ceremony to Netanyahu.
The ceremony took place at the Russian Defense Ministry and in the presence of senior military commanders, led by Russian Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
Russian media focused on how important of an achievement this is for Netanyahu, who is fighting hard to defeat his rivals in the April 9 elections.
Baumel’s remains aren’t Moscow’s first gift to Tel Aviv. Back in 2016, Moscow returned a Magach tank to which the three missing soldiers had been assigned. It was captured by Syrian forces in the battle of Sultan Yacoub.
The tank was gifted to Russia by Syria, and has been housed in a military hardware museum in Moscow Region for several decades. Handing in the Magash was a strong signal for boosting Russian-Israeli cooperation.
