Failing to Find Missing Settlers, ’Israel’ Lowers Expectations

Local Editor

Nearly two weeks after the three "Israelis" went missing in the West Bank, the "Israeli" army is starting to lower expectations for the operation to bring them safely.

"As time passes, concern for their lives grows," "Israel" Military Forces Chief of Staff Benny Gantz told reporters Tuesday near al-Khalil, the West Bank city around where the search is focusing.

Commenting on the "Israeli" failure in finding the settlers, Haaretz daily reported that preparing the "Israeli" public "for the possibility that the search will end with the discovery of bodies or without any resolution for months isn't necessarily the army's role."

But with government spokesmen constantly repeating the line that "the working hypothesis is that the three are still alive," Gantz has changed the picture.
According to the daily, "The passage of time, based on experience and evidence from the current investigation, does not bode well. The absence of any sign of life may mean that the "kidnappers" have fled the area; at least that's the assessment among security officials."

"The arrest of nearly 300 Hamas activists, the arrest some of the "terrorists" released in the 2011 deal to free abducted soldier Gilad Shalit, the raids on charity organizations linked to Hamas - all these actions have run their course," it added.

Source: Haaretz , Edited by website team