The Knesset’s National Security Committee recently approved amendments to the Missing Persons Family Assistance Bill, clearing the way for the legislation to move to the full Knesset for its second and third readings before becoming law.
The committee, chaired by Tzvi Foghel, advanced the bill after discussions with representatives of families of missing persons, government ministries, the IDF, and the Israel Dog Unit (IDU).
During the committee session, IDU director Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov praised lawmakers and advocacy groups for what he described as years of persistent work to improve assistance for families of missing persons.
Ben-Yaakov also used the occasion to call for additional legislation, which he referred to as a proposed “Search Law," aimed at regulating and coordinating search operations from the earliest stages of a missing-person case. According to Ben-Yaakov, the proposed legislation would improve interagency cooperation and establish clearer operational procedures to ensure searches are conducted more quickly and professionally.
“I hope that the Missing Persons Assistance Law will pass quickly," Ben-Yaakov said, adding that he hoped to work together with Fogel on the future search legislation “which will bring about the enforcement of existing procedures" and strengthen operational authority in missing-person cases.
Fogel pledged during the discussion to assist in drafting and advancing the proposed search legislation.
The Missing Persons Family Assistance Bill is intended to formalize support mechanisms for families dealing with missing-person cases and create clearer frameworks for state assistance.