Family says second missing Israeli disappeared in April, and that they did not know he was in Gaza until now.
The family of the Bedouin Israeli who is believed to be in Gaza was surprised on Thursday to learn that he was in the Strip. “We didn’t have information on where our son was. We were surprised of the claim he was in Gaza,” the man’s father said.
The young Bedouin entered the Gaza Strip several months after Avraham Mangisto from Ashkelon, who wandered into Gaza through the beach.
“We’re waiting for the situation to clear up, it’s possible this is about someone else,” the father added.
The family says the man is mentally ill. They said he has not made contact with them since April and that they did not know whether he was dead or alive.
“From what we hear, my son is still alive,” the father said. “He disappears a lot but usually comes back after 24 hours. This is the first time he’s been missing for such a long time.”
“If he’s in Gaza then this is new information that at least lets us know where he is,” he went on to say. “Before that, we didn’t know anything. Now we’re waiting until we know for sure and confirm the things that were published.”
The father said the family has been looking for their son for months and has been waiting for new developments.
“If he’s being held by Hamas, then we would like to turn to them and ask them to release him because he was not aware of what he was doing,” he said.
“It’s still hard for us to comprehend what happened. We’re all worried, and won’t calm down until we know if he’s alive or dead.”
Hamas leader Khaled Mashal claimed Wednesday that Israel has been sending messages to the group through a European intermediary, asking the organization to return the bodies of two soldiers in their possession since Operation Protective Edge – Staff Sergeant Oron Shaul and Sec.-Lit. Hadar Goldin – as well as two additional Israelis.
Israel has yet to comment on the missing Bedouin, who is believed in the in Gaza.
The second Israeli believed to be in Hamas hands is Avraham Mangisto, 29 years old from Ashkelon, has gone missing in the early hours of September 8, 2014, and was seen crossing the border into Gaza out of his own volition. Hamas denies having Mangisto, with a Palestinian source telling Ynet Mangisto was questioned and released when the organization learned he was not a soldier.
As reported by Ynetnews