Family of IDF soldier killed in 1948 learns his body was in mass grave, to receive military ceremony

According to The Zioneer, the family of IDF soldier Jacob Zrihan, killed in April 1948 during Operation Harel, was informed that his body was interred in a mass grave at Kiryat Anavim alongside seven other soldiers. The family will now hold a military ceremony to add a tombstone at the cemetery.

The family of IDF soldier Jacob Zrihan, killed in April 1948 during Operation Harel, was notified Wednesday evening that his remains were buried in a mass grave at the Kiryat Anavim military cemetery alongside seven other soldiers from the same convoys. The family will now hold a military ceremony to add a tombstone at the cemetery, providing closure after 78 years of uncertainty.

The Zioneer first reported at 19:56 Jerusalem Wednesday that the IDF announced the discovery of a soldier whose burial place had been unknown. Within minutes, subsequent updates confirmed the soldier's identity as Pvt. Yaakov Zrihan, missing since 1948, and that the grave was identified at Kiryat Anavim after a 15-year investigation by the IDF's Missing Persons Unit. The unit determined that the grave contained eight soldiers from Operation Harel, with Zrihan among them.

As The Zioneer reported earlier, Zrihan was part of a convoy to Jerusalem on April 20, 1948, and was killed in battle near Sha'ar Hagai along with 13 other members of the convoy. He was initially buried on April 22 at the Kiryat Anavim cemetery, but the exact location was lost until the recent investigation. The IDF's Missing Persons Unit led the effort, which spanned 15 years.

The date of the family's military ceremony has not yet been announced. The family's decades-long wait for a marked grave is now set to end.

7 developments

1. 2 hours ago · 20:24 · 8 JulLatest

   Soldier identified as Private Jacob Zrihan, missing since 1948.

2. 20:19 · 8 Jul

   Family to hold military ceremony and add tombstone at cemetery.

3. 20:09 · 8 Jul

   Soldier identified after 78 years; buried with 7 others.

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