Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that he will increase efforts to locate Israelis missing after the earthquake in New Zealand last week, even as authorities in Christchurch formally identified the body of Israeli victim Ofer Mizrahi.
Eight Israelis are believed to have been traveling in New Zealand at the time of the earthquake, and their whereabouts are still unknown. There is concern for two of that number in particular – Gabby Ingel and Ofer Levi from Rehovot – as Israeli rescue team Magnus said that both had been seen in the area some 20 minutes before the quake struck.
"There are two Israelis missing in New Zealand; there are fears for their lives," Netanyahu said Sunday. "We are working with the government of New Zealand, via the Foreign Ministry, to locate those who are missing and to provide assistance, such as I have offered to New Zealand Prime Minister John Key, to help New Zealand overcome this crisis. They have requested certain equipment; we are holding discussions with them today.
"The Foreign Ministry is in contact with them in order to see what we can send. We would like to accelerate efforts to search for the two missing Israelis. I intend to speak with Prime Minister Key today in order to advance these two issues."
A firefighter works near the collapsed CTV building Tuesday’s earthquake in the New Zealand city of Christchurch February 23, 2011.
Mizrahi, 23, of Kibutz Magal near Hadera, had been traveling in Australia and New Zealand for two months, accompanied by his three childhood friends. The other three survived the earthquake and have since returned to Israel.
Mizrahi’s friends said he was killed instantly when a concrete beam smashed through the roof of the car he was driving, moments after the earthquake hit.
The 6.3 magnitude quake struck at lunchtime, when streets and shops thronged with people and offices were still occupied in Christchurch, a historic tourist town popular with overseas students. The official earthquake death toll currently stands at 147 human lives, but hopes that some of the 200 or so people listed as missing might still be saved are starting to dissipate.
On Saturday, New Zealand’s government requested aid from Israel in the form of sanitation, water purification equipment and temporary shelters, Netanyahu’s office said.
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