Yeah, he had a passion for astronomy. But what interested him, I think, was not so much the stars as the way they reveal themselves to humans. Their capacity to unite people and nations of the world. He believed breaching the secrets of the stars was the ultimate goal of mankind. No, I don’t see a reason why he should have deserted. He was an idealist, that is certain. Most saw him as a weird fellow though. He had his twists. But I appreciated him. He was a great listener, although his compassion was often misunderstood as contempt. He used to smile a strange smile all along until you finished talking. It gave the impression he was only mildly interested in what you were saying. I’m quite sure he was unaware of the effect he produced on people."

Sergeant Kovalev’s defection took place on the night of 25st October, 1990, with the assistance of SLA officer Jamal Niba.

"In a military base like Marjayoun, everybody knows each other after a while, even SLA and IDF soldiers. Sergeant Kovalev used to pop in our logistics office, to say hello and chat. We became friends. Generally, Israeli soldiers like to talk about politics, Kovalev liked to discuss religious matters. He knew our theology surprisingly well. He was fond of our patron saint, a hermit called Saint Maron who had chosen to live in open air, exposed to the extremes of the climate, in opposition to other hermits living in cells or caves. He had an interest in mysticism, I suppose. When he asked me to drive him to Jizzin, I warned him, as a friend, that it could get him into serious trouble. Israeli soldiers aren’t allowed out of the base unless in secured convoys for operational purposes. Besides, Jizzin was officially outside IDF zone. He said he’d go anyway, and he’d appreciate if it was me who’d help him out of here."

Except for his binoculars, all IDF equipment, including rifle, was recovered from sergeant Kovalev’s room. He had left the base in sports clothing. What left us puzzled in the first instance was the ease with which sergeant Kovalev made his way in the area, moving along, making contacts with rivaling militias, and staying alive. A hint of explanation to this might be the missing page of an otherwise blank notebook found in his room. Reconstitution of its content was achieved thanks to the imprints found on the empty page below it. The page that sergeant Kovalev apparently took with him contained data pertaining astronomical predictions for the whole year of 1990. It is possible that sergeant Kovalev is gaining food and shelter from muslims in rural areas by manipulating their religious beliefs, particularly on the theme of the return of Al Mahdi - the messiah - who is supposed to deliver the world after a long period of occultation. Sergeant Kovalev might present himself as a messenger bringing news about the twelfth imam, the Qua’im, which he supposedly reads in the sky. At this time of writing, sergeant Kovalev has left Sidon and his new destination remains unknown. We do not exclude the possibility he is dead.