'We have faith in Israel's security establishment,' families say

Six days after teenagers Gil-ad Shaer, Naftali Frenkel and Eyal Yifrach were abducted, their families met with Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon and received an overview of the efforts being made to find their sons.

When they left the meeting on Wednesday, the Shaers, Frenkels, and Yifrachs declined to divulge what they had been told.

"We support the security forces and don't have anything to add at this stage," Ophir and Bat-Galim Shaer said.

Uri and Iris Yifrach, Eyal's parents, said, "It was a very good meeting. He updated us on everything. We hope that the kids will be returned safe and sound, soon."

Avi Frenkel, father of Naftali, said: "We got the impression that the security establishment is doing everything it can to bring back the boys. We have complete faith in the security apparatus and in all the operations it's conducting."

On Wednesday afternoon, the police played the families the recording of one of the captives' call to the police emergency line. Police officials said that the recording prompted tears, and that some of the family members found it difficult to listen to and left the room.

Israel Police Commissioner Yohanan Danino has formed a committee to investigate the police's conduct in the early stages of the abduction. The team has been charged with probing how the Judea and Samaria District Police handled the victim's call from the time it was answered until an alert to the teens' possible kidnapping was issued, as well as how various police units handled complaints and calls the night of the kidnapping from family members who said their sons were missing.

Brig. Gen. Moshe Barkat, head of the Patrol Brigade in the Israel Police's Operational Branch, has been appointed to head the committee, which is due to present its conclusions and recommendations in the next few days.

On the day of the kidnapping, the Judea and Samaria District Police emergency dispatch line was staffed not only by a soldier performing compulsory service in the police, but also by two veteran police officers who have been responsible for saving lives and, until the kidnapping, had never made mistakes.

"We're talking about operational professionalism," a police source said on Wednesday. "The public needs to understand that the emergency lines are staffed by human beings, and generally any mistakes made there are human errors."

Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch, who on Wednesday visited the Makor Chaim Yeshiva in Kfar Etzion where Shaer and Frenkel are students, addressed criticism of the police handling of the call.

"This criticism is justified, naturally," Ahronovitch said. "I've heard the recording. It's very hard to understand, but one day it will be made known to the public. If there were mistakes or anything else, we need to look into it."

During the minister's visit, Gush Etzion Local Council head Davidi Pearl asked Aharonovitch to press the cabinet to finish the road around Al-Arub, which he said presents a security risk and even endangers lives.

Meanwhile, a stream of public figures continued to make their way to the Shaer home. One of them was Likud MK Ofir Akunis.

"I visit the families every day and see the amazing strength they're showing in a very difficult reality," Akunis said. "We said that we'll do everything, absolutely everything, to bring the boys home. That includes re-arresting despicable terrorists who were released as part of the [Gilad] Schalit deal."

Finance Minister Yair Lapid also visited the family's home in Talmon.

"In moments like these, we see how strong and united this people is," Lapid said. "On one hand, we will keep watch over this dear family, and on the other we will keep pursuing Hamas, strike it and leave no stone unturned, until we find the boys and bring them home."

Also on Wednesday, the Israel Defense Forces launched a Facebook campaign aimed at the international community designed to give a name and face to each of the three kidnapped teens and show what the IDF is doing to rescue them.

Since the page was first posted, showing each of the youths with their names in English and the words "Kidnapped by Hamas," hundreds of thousands of people have seen it.

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