Searches continued Friday for four-year-old Yuval Kogan, who has been missing since Thursday morning in the Hofit Beach area of Ashkelon.
Overnight, drones searched the area, and large police forces resumed operations Friday morning, combing the area from both the air and the ground in an effort to locate the boy. So far, search teams have found no trace of him.
On Thursday evening, the Shin Bet joined the search effort, with personnel working alongside Southern District police officers, the Air Unit, the Marine Police, divers from the police volunteer unit, civilian volunteers, and additional emergency and rescue teams.
Yuval's mother, Dina Kogan, told Channel 12 News, "I'm afraid my son was kidnapped. The police keep searching the same area, but maybe this is an abduction. Maybe some psychopath took him, or perhaps it was a nationalist-motivated kidnapping. These are critical hours. I need the entire country. I'm a pediatrician who spends my time caring for other people's children, and now I need your help. I'm begging you - please help me. I want the entire country to help me."
According to Dina, Yuval's father and the children climbed a sand dune, and for several minutes they lost sight of him, and after that he disappeared.
"He is a mature and intelligent child, above average for his age in both behavior and speech. He has strong emotional intelligence, so it doesn't make sense that he would hide in the bushes for this long. We need to think outside the box and not keep searching only the same area over and over again," she said.
Police said Yuval is of slim build, has brown hair, and was last seen wearing a green T-shirt.
The public is urged to remain alert and report any information that could assist the search. Anyone with information about Yuval Kogan's whereabouts is asked to contact the Israel Police emergency hotline at 100 or the Ashkelon Police Station at 08-677-1440 immediately.
