SEARCH FOR THE MISSING: Police and Canine Rescue Teams Launch New Operation Near Tzfas and Meron in Multiple Unsolved Disappearance Cases

SEARCH FOR THE MISSING: Police and Canine Rescue Teams Launch New Operation Near Tzfas and Meron in Multiple Unsolved Disappearance Cases

Israeli police and specialized search teams have launched another effort to locate several people who vanished in northern Israel, conducting an extensive operation in the Tzfas and Meron region this week as investigators continue pursuing leads in a series of unresolved missing-person cases. The operation, carried out jointly by officers from the Tzfas Police Station and the Israel Dog Unit, concentrated primarily on two men who disappeared in separate incidents in 2022 and 2024. Search personnel also examined areas associated with other longstanding cases, including the disappearances of Moishe Kleinerman, Moshe Eliezer Ilovitz and nine-year-old Hymanut Kassaou. The Israel Dog Unit, a nonprofit organization that specializes in deploying trained search dogs, joined police officers in combing through difficult terrain in the mountainous northern region. The teams employed multiple search techniques in an effort to identify possible evidence or locate the missing individuals. One of the principal subjects of the renewed search was Rafael Haim Hadad, who was approximately 60 years old when he disappeared from the Tzfas area on November 18, 2022. Nearly four years later, his whereabouts remain unknown. Investigators also focused on David Padida, who was approximately 28 when he went missing on October 15, 2024. The latest operation took place around the second anniversary of his disappearance. The Tzfas and Meron region has been the scene of several unexplained disappearances over the years, some involving individuals whose cases have attracted considerable public attention. Among them is Moishe Kleinerman, a chareidi teenager who was 16 when he disappeared in March 2022 after traveling to the Meron area. Despite extensive searches involving police, volunteers and specialized rescue teams, his fate remains unknown. Another unresolved case involves Moshe Eliezer Ilovitz, a 37-year-old father who disappeared in May 2019 after leaving his home in Tzfas. His disappearance prompted numerous searches in the surrounding forests and mountainous terrain, but investigators have yet to determine what happened to him. The operation also covered locations potentially relevant to the disappearance of Hymanut Kassaou, who was nine years old when she vanished from the Tzfas area in February 2024. Her case has generated widespread concern and repeated appeals for information from authorities and family members. Earlier searches in the same region have included examinations of caves, deep pits, thick vegetation and isolated locations where missing individuals might have sought shelter or become trapped. In July 2025, investigators renewed searches following testimony concerning a possible lead in the disappearance of David Padida. The Israel Dog Unit regularly works alongside police and other emergency organizations in missing-person investigations, using specially trained dogs, drones, off-road vehicles and volunteer search personnel to examine areas that are difficult to reach. The latest operation began Tuesday, October 13, with search teams moving through wooded and rugged sections of the Upper Galilee. The use of specialized equipment and canine teams was intended to help investigators examine locations that ordinary ground searches might overlook. The Kleinerman case, in particular, has remained a source of anguish for the family and the wider chareidi community. Earlier this month, relatives renewed their appeal for assistance as the missing bochur’s 21st birthday approached, more than four years after he was last seen. His uncle, Chaim Hanfling, urged members of the public to help by sharing information, davening and undertaking acts of Torah learning or other good deeds as a zechus for his safe return. The families of the other missing individuals have likewise endured years of uncertainty, with successive searches failing to provide definitive answers about their loved ones’ whereabouts. Authorities have not announced a breakthrough resulting from this week’s operation. The Israel Dog Unit is requesting that anyone who possesses information, however seemingly insignificant, concerning any of the missing individuals contact its emergency hotline at 054-487-6709. Police are also continuing to accept information that could assist the investigations. {Matzav.com}