10 days have passed since the kidnapping of the three boys at the Alon Shvut junction, and the search for them has so far yielded no results. No signs of life or significant intelligence information have been received, and fear for their fate is growing. The end of the operation also seems close, and even if the abductees are not found, it will likely end in the coming days, This was told by a senior officer to a Walla News reporter. According to him, the searches in the area and the interrogation of the detainees will continue, but the massive presence of soldiers in the area will end within a few days. The reason: The IDF's 'target bank' is running out, and most of the organization's operatives have been arrested. The fact that the Ramadan holiday is approaching also makes it difficult for the operation to continue in the hearts of the local population.
Yet the members of the firefighter rescue unit and the IDF's special units are filled with faith and enthusiasm. Over the past few days, every stone has been turned in the mountainous area of northern Hebron, and hundreds of pits and cavities have been searched for signs of life for the missing. They told reporters on the ground today: "This is an effort, but it will be worth it in the end. We will find the kidnapped and everything will be fine. This is a national mission.".
The soldiers in the field were joined today [A] by the Yahalam unit - an engineering unit for special missions, and their job is to handle the weapons that were uncovered, which include grenades, explosives, and weapons. During the searches, the fighters found bunkers, tunnels, and ten explosives laboratories.
Kidnapping doesn't pay off.
So far, over 350 Palestinian detainees have been arrested, most of them Hamas activists. All those released in the "Shalit deal" who belong to the organization have been returned to prison for involvement in terrorist activity, or due to intelligence information that they have violated the conditions of their release. The IDF wants to make it clear to the organization that kidnapping is not profitable. Terrorists will not be released in exchange for Israelis, and on the contrary, even those who have been released are returning to prison.
IDF spokesman Brigadier General Almuz said today that "every green sprout of Hamas that has sprouted in Judea and Samaria in recent years has been thwarted by IDF fighters," he added, adding that "a connection has been found between civil associations and terrorism from the Gaza Strip, and this too is being dealt with on the ground and in the face of intelligence information. We will continue until it is stopped and the people are brought home.".
Almoz also said that "we are in the midst of a busy day of operational activity in all sectors and I want to take a moment to put things in order. Here in Judea and Samaria, the main effort of the last ten days to search for the three boys continues. We are conducting a very large effort both on the intelligence-operational level and in searches here in the field, and this effort will continue in the coming days.".
The working premise: They are alive.
The question of the condition of the kidnapped boys was mentioned today in a briefing given by the IDF spokesman to the media. He clarified that according to the information available to the IDF, it can be assumed that the boys are alive. "We understand the sensitivity of the information regarding the condition of the kidnapped," said Almuz, "The information we have allows us to make the assumption that they are alive. We will continue to search and turn over every stone until we reach them. We understand what is happening on the ground and are constantly adapting operational activity to intelligence targets and operational activity on the ground.".
Rachel Frankel, the mother of the kidnapped Naftali Frankel, said today in an interview with the AP news agency: "It's hard to breathe, but we're doing it. Ten days is very difficult, when you're waiting for your son to come home from school. These are very difficult days, it's an effort for us to eat and sleep, it doesn't always work out, but we hope, we're very optimistic that we'll see him soon and we're trying to stay sane.".
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