ISRAEL: RALLY IN SUPPORT OF CAPTURED SOLDIERS FAMILIES

Описание: (6 Dec 2000) English/Nat
XFA
It's nearly two months since Hezbollah guerrillas captured three Israeli soldiers along the Lebanon border.

On Tuesday their families called on the Israeli government and the people of Israel not to forget their sons and to do all they can to bring them back.

In a rally in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, hundreds of people gathered to express their support for the families of the three men and to join them in the hope that they will be released soon.

Adi Avitan, Omer Sawayid and Avraham Binyamin were captured on October 7 after Hezbollah troops ambushed an Israeli patrol and attacked outposts along the border under the cover of rockets and machine gun fire.

In a statement issued by Hezbollah, they called on Israel to trade the three prisoners for at least a dozen Lebanese held in Israeli jails, including two guerrilla leaders.

There has been no information regarding the three soldiers' condition, and it's not clear if they are wounded or even alive.

Israeli Deputy Defence Minister, Ephraim Sneh, said Israel was doing everything possible to bring the three soldiers home.

The capture of the three soldiers was the first time in 14 years that anti-Israel guerrillas in Lebanon had seized members of the Israeli armed forces.

In 1986, Israeli airman Ron Arad was captured alive by Amal guerrillas after his jet fighter was shot down over Lebanon.

He was later turned over to Hezbollah.

SOUNDBITE: (English)
"We are trying in several channels to try to reach an opportunity to bring our boys back. There is no good news yet. We know actually nothing about their whereabouts, about their medical condition, actually nothing, but we will never stop our efforts to obtain the information and to bring them back home."
SUPER CAPTION: Ephraim Sneh, Israeli Deputy Defence Minister

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