Israel Matzav

Breaking: IDF soldier kidnapped near Ben Gurion Airport; UPDATED

The 'Palestinian' news agency Maan is reporting that an IDF soldier has been kidnapped near Ben Gurion Airport and is being held somewhere near Bethlehem (Hat Tip: Eliyahu P).

Israeli authorities said they were investigating reports of the capture of a soldier near Ben Gurion International Airport, in the center of the country, on Thursday.

“The matter is being investigated,” a military spokesperson told Ma’an when asked about the reports.

A previously unknown group calling itself the “Al-Quds Army” claimed responsibility for the reported capture in a statement sent to Ma’an.

“A group of our resistance fighters captured an Israeli soldier near Ben Gurion Airport and withdrew along with the soldier without incident … we will provide details about the captured soldier later,” the statement said.

Reliable Israeli sources also said that a state of security alert prevailed inside Israel in response to a phone call from a soldier who said he had been captured.

Israeli forces have also set up checkpoints on roads leading into major cities, though reports conflict about the nature and intensity of the reported security measures in Israel. Heavy security checks were also imposed on the road linking Tel Aviv to city of Modi’in (part of which, Modi’in Ilit, is a settlement ) causing a traffic jam.

The website of the prominent Israeli newspaper Haaretz said security checks caused severe delays near the airport.

Some Israeli news sites reported the security measures, but said they were the result of a “specific security warning,” the nature of which the Israeli military censor may have banned from publishing.

More details when I have them.

UPDATE 8:17 PM

Here's a video from an evening newscast of the roadblocks that were put into effect today. Israel still has not officially acknowledged that the kidnapping of an IDF soldier is suspected.

Let's go to the videotape (narrative in Hebrew):



And here's an account from China's Xinhua news agency:

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is currently investigating a report that an Israeli soldier was possibly kidnapped, an IDF spokeswoman said on Thursday. The IDF will provide more information about the investigation in due time, the spokeswoman told Xinhua on the phone. She did not rule out the possibility of the abduction of an IDF soldier. Earlier, an Israeli source told Xinhua that the security forces are searching for a car that possibly kidnapped an Israeli soldier.

UPDATE 9:00 PM

Israel Television is now reporting the story, which has appeared on newspaper web sites and wire services in the last half hour. It's still being termed an 'investigation,' but JPost reports that a female soldier saw a male soldier being pushed into a car by two men.

Israel Television reports that this happened at the Lod air base, right behind the airport. They are doing a roll call to track down every soldier in the country! Israel Television reports that the IDF has not yet concluded whether a soldier was kidnapped or not. As you will note above, Ma'an reports that a soldier was kidnapped.

The IDF says this happens once or twice a month, but this tension is unusual and apparently this story has more to it than the usual.

Israel Television says that the al-Quds army has taken responsibility. The terror organization (which may be fictitious) promises more details in a few hours. Nothing yet.

Israel Television is now reporting from the Ramot checkpoint at the entry to Jerusalem - about a five-minute drive from my house. They say that drivers are being checked more closely. Jewish drivers are typically waved through these checkpoints, so for them to be stopped at all is unusual.

UPDATE 9:35 PM

Maan adds:

No major Israeli newspapers or agencies were reporting the abduction within the first few hours it was suspected, likely due to the country's tight military censorship policies. However, the ban on publication appeared to have been lifted by about 8pm Thursday night.

Soon after, the Hebrew-language newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that Israel's military and police had known about the apparent abduction since noon on Thursday, and that a soldier was thought to have been forced into a car at an intersection near an air force base close to the Tel Aviv-area airport.

Shortly thereafter, the Jerusalem Post reported that helicopters and ground troops were operating near the suspected site of the abduction. It added by nightfall police had begun to remove roadblocks, which the paper said had been set up not only in Israel but in the West Bank, as well.

The Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz quoted a military statement that a report had been filed by a witness to the capture. The country's military and Shin Bet intelligence agency were looking into it, Haaretz said.

Israel's Channel 10 quoted a female soldier who said she had witnessed the capture of a male soldier. The station also said the army had begun calling all soldiers to report to officers as an accounting measure to determine whether or not anyone was missing.

Unfortunately, my gut says that there is a kidnapped soldier. I've been in this country too many years. Things don't get like this unless there's something real behind them.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 7:35 PM