While the IDF and General Security Service (GSS) continue combing the West Bank in the attempt to obtain information that might lead to the three Israeli youths kidnapped last Thursday - Eyal Yifrach, Gilad Shaar and Naftali Frankel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talked today with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) today. Netanyahu told Abbas, "I expect you to help in returning the kidnapped boys and in capturing the kidnappers. The kidnappers belong to the Hamas organization, set out from Palestinian Authority territory, and returned to territory controlled by the Authority. This incident exposes the nature of the terror we are fighting against: terrorists who kidnap innocent Israeli children, while in our hospitals we deal in saving the lives of sick Palestinian children. This is the difference between our humane policy and the murderous terrorism that attacks us." During the conversation with Abbas, Netanyahu said that the consequences of the partnership between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas were damaging for Israel, for the Palestinians, and for the entire region.
Last night, the arrests of Hamas activists on the West Bank continued, particularly in the Hebron area. Among the 40 people arrested by the IDF and ISA (Israel Security Agency, formerly known as the General Security Service) overnight was Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council Aziz Duwaik.
At a meeting last night with officers involved in the search operation, Chief of Staff Benny Gantz said, "We are on our way to a substantial campaign. We have one aim, which is to find the three boys, bring them home, hit Hamas as hard as possible, and move on. We will meet in the coming days, the less often the better, but we will meet as much as necessary."
Meanwhile there has been widespread criticism of the role of the police in the incident. Police officers manning the 100 emergency line decided not to act on a distress call from one of the kidnapped youths, who managed to call the service and whisper twice into his mobile telephone "I've been kidnapped". At the time, the officers dismissed the call as a hoax. Asked about this, Gantz said, "So far, very good work has been done by all concerned in this incident: Israel Police, Yamam (Special Central Unit specializing in counter-terror), Border Guards, and all branches of the IDF."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 16, 2014
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