By Andrew Coen
Woodmere resident Eli Fruchter was a good friend of Baumel's when he lived in New York. Fruchter and his brother-law, Dr. Asher Mansdorf, also of Woodmere, along with Izzy Wasser of Cedarhurst, traveled to Washington, D.C., with local elected officials last week to meet with Congressional leaders and try to convince them to determine the missing soldier's whereabouts. Baumel joined the Israeli army after moving to Israel from the U.S., and has been missing since a tank battle on the Lebanon-Syria border in June of 1982.
For the past quarter century, Baumel's father, Yona, and his mother, Miriam, have spent countless hours searching for their son, and have met with numerous people worldwide in their quest for information. Baumel family members are now urging people to write letters and e-mails seeking information on Zachary, who would be in his 40s.
Two weeks prior to the Washington trip, Baumel's father spoke at Young Israel of Woodmere about the ordeal of not seeing his son in 23 years and not knowing whether he is still alive. "After you hear about a father who hasn't seen their son in 23 years, it tears your heart out," said Wasser, who wanted to help revive the case after hearing Baumel's speech.
Yona Baumel, who immigrated to Israel from New York, recently told Israel TV that he believes his son might still be alive. He received part of a book through a circuitous route from Syria that contained dots under letters that spelled out "Zachary," in addition to four extra letters that he said were a family joke only his son and daughter would know. The book was turned over to Israeli police, who did not find Baumel's fingerprints, but determined that there appeared to be emphasized words that could indicate messages like "hope," "help" and "faith."
U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy (D-Mineola) was one of the elected officials who met with the Five Towns delegation, and the visitors asking for her help in calling on the Syrian government to disclose Baumel's whereabouts. McCarthy agreed to petition the U.S. State Department and the White House to pressure the Syrian government to resolve the matter, since it is now believed that Baumel may be alive and in captivity. McCarthy met with Baumel's father in Cedarhurst last Sunday to discuss ways to help revive his son's case.
On Sept. 18, Yona Baumel wrote a letter to Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi, who also went to Washington, along with Legislator Jeff Toback (D-Oceanside), urging Suozzi to press U.S. leaders such as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to confront Syria and find out what happened to his son. "Secretary of State Rice has the ability to bring this to fruition, but not without the encouragement of people like you, who have a history of championing difficult causes," Baumel wrote in his letter to Suozzi. "Miriam and I are aging, and are reaching out to you in these most desperate of times."
Comments on this story? E-mail acoen@liherald.com, or call (516) 569-4000 ext. 210.
