Netanyahu: The boys were kidnapped by a terrorist organization
In his first statement since the disappearance last Thursday of three Israeli teens near Hebron, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said: ”They were kidnapped by a terrorist organization – thout a doubt.” He again held Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas responsible for their safety, because, he said, the terrorists had come from an area under Palestinian Authority control. Netanyahu said he had ordered the IDF and Shin Bet to ascertain that the kidnap victims were not transferred to the Gaza Strip or anywhere outside the the West Bank. Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon and Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz, who spoke after Netanyahu, said the military operation for rescuing the boys was expanding all the time.