(Communicated by the Office of the President)
President Shimon Peres, this morning (Thursday, 19 June 2014), at the President's Residence in Jerusalem, met with the families of
Eyal Yifrach, Naftali Frankel and Gilad Shaar. President Peres embraced the families and heard from them about their experiences over the past days. President Peres said, "I asked to meet you because this is a national event, the whole nation is united and standing by your side and praying with you for the safe return of your boys. The security forces are working day and night in every street and alley of Hebron and leaving no stone unturned in the effort to find your boys." President Peres stressed that, "The security forces will do everything to bring the boys home."
President Peres addressed the reaction in the world and said, "The leaders of the world must make their voices heard loud and clear, they must take a strong stance against terror. Terror is a global problem, not just an Israeli one – we must recruit the world." President Peres told the families that he will raise the same demand during his visit to the United States next week, "The world is not yet recruited; during my conversations with President Obama and the leaders of the US Congress I will raise the cry of the people of Israel against terrorism, both in private and in public. We must continue to
pressure the terrorists, to remove their sources of funding. Just as there were sanctions against Iran we must raise the sanctions against any source of terror. They must be brought to justice. And we must call out, so that the children in countries which foster terrorism know that it is a disaster for them as well."
Ofir Shaar, the father of Gilad, said, "We thank you, Mr. President, for your involvement on behalf of our sons, Gilad, Naftali and Eyal. Your invitation to us is another example of the genuine support we have felt over the past days from all directions, with no distinction between religion, politics or sector. Your words strengthen us as we stand strong and united in this difficult time that our families find themselves in. The people of Israel are with us. The Jews of the world are with us. We expect the whole world to act to free our boys. We ask of you all to do more and to your positive thoughts, to increase your prayers alongside the actions of the security services who are working night and day to bring back Naftali, Eyal and Gilad home safely as soon as possible."
During the meeting, which lasted over an hour and a half, the parents told President Peres about their children, about their hobbies, about the source of their names and about their friends and family. Eyal's parents told President Peres that not long ago their son had visited the President's Residence with his
pre-military study program. Gilad's parents told President Peres that their son loves his friends and five sisters. Naftali's parents spoke about his excellence as a student and his love for playing the guitar.