- By Shubham Bajpai
- Sat, 07 Mar 2026 08:30 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Amid strikes against Hezbollah, Helicopter-born commandoes of the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) landed in Nabi Chit, a village in Lebanon, to locate the remains of an Israeli Air Force navigator, Ron Arad, who went missing 40 years back after his plane went down, according to the Israeli military.
The raid, according to The Times of Israel, was conducted simultaneously with Israeli strikes that killed at least 41 people.
IDF said that the remains were not discovered during the Nabi Chit operation and that it can now rule out one of the possible locations where Arad's remain may be.
The overnight helicopter landing was first reported by the Lebanese state media and Hezbollah in Nabi Chit in the Baalbek district near the Lebanese-Syrian border.
No casualties were reported during the operation.
Who was Ron Arad?
Ron Arad's disappearance is linked to Israel's longest-running hunt, as four decades ago, in October 1986, an Israeli aircraft was shot down over Lebanon during hostilities between the two countries.
Following the incident, its navigator, Arad, disappeared. It is believed that he was initially captured and held by the Shiite Amal movement. He was later presumed dead somewhere in the Beqaa Valley and was buried there. As the exact location remains unknown, the IDF has been searching for his remains.
What does Arad's widow want?
Tami, Arad’s widow, has said that the family does not want his body to be recovered if it means an operation, as it would put the lives of more IDF soldiers at risk. In a statement, she had said that the family's request has been repeatedly ignored by decision-makers as they emphasise finding his remains.
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"We understand that our words until now have not been understood by the decision-makers and therefore it’s important for us to clarify: Our desire to know what happened to Ron stops as soon as there is risk to IDF soldiers,” The Times of Israel report quoted her saying on Facebook.
"In our eyes, the sanctity of life comes before the commitment to return the remains of a fighter for burial. This is our worldview also regarding our loved one who disappeared some 40 years ago," she further wrote in her post.