A search for a woman missing from Be'er Sheva is now entering its second week. Dana Ben-Tov, age 36, vanished on Yom Kippur Eve from Soroka Hospital and has not been seen since.
Police have confirmed the location of her last communication, made along a highway between Be'er Sheva and Dimona.
The Israel Dog Unit (IDU), a nonprofit specializing in search and rescue, commented that the woman is suspected of being in mortal danger. "The IDU is using working dogs and drones in an attempt to find Dana. We are seriously concerned for her welfare."
The organization has declared a marathon search effort over the next few days and called for additional volunteers to help man a wide variety of search apparatus that will be employed, including horses, ATVs, drones, and the IDU's signature working dogs. Licensed firearm owners have likewise been asked to help secure the search effort.
IDU director Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov commented that the evidence indicates her disappearance may have been connected to nationalist activity: "She last made contact from the highway between Be'er Sheva and Dimona, on Yom Kippur Eve, when she called police asking for help. It is highly unlikely that there were Jews on the highway at that time. Everyone knows about the lack of governance in the Negev; it is likely that the local Bedouins who set up camps along these roads are the last ones to have seen her and they hold the keys to resolving this mystery. The ISA and other intelligence agencies should be involved in this investigation."
In an urgent message that Ben-Yaakov sent to heads of the local and national police, he urged them to check highway cameras to learn which direction Dana was moving and to see which cars passed or perhaps picked her up. The message also asks that intelligence units be sent to interview residents of the local Bedouin encampments.