23-year-old Israeli backpacker missing in South America
Family of Omri Lahad request help to find their son who has been missing for more than a month.
By Eli Ashkenazi Tags: Israel travel Israel newsTwenty-three-year-old backpacker Omri Lahad was declared missing in South America on Thursday, after his family reported not having any contact with him for more than a month.
Israel has sent a search team to Colombia, where Lahad was last seen, but so far they have not found any signs of his whereabouts.
Lahad separated from his group of friends on October 26 in the town of Leticia on the border between Columbia and Peru. On October 28 he withdrew money from a local ATM before heading out on a cruise toward the Iquitos in the Peruvian rainforest.
Ever since then his family, from the northern town of Rosh Pina, has not had any contact with him.
The family have requested that anyone who has heard from or seen Lahad during the last month to contact them at the following e-mail address: findomrilahad@gmail.com
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Omri Lahad in South America. |
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Did he make the boat to Iquitos? There must be some record of that. Or did someone hit him after he used the ATM?
Israeli backpackers ("mochileros") here in South America are thousands and thousands. It is rather frequent that given their sense of self-reliance (after the army) they often take foolish risks. It happens quite often that they have to be searched for on some lost volcano slope in Chile, or some particularly inaccessible terrain in Perú, Brazil or Bolivia. Usually they are found, and brought to safety. Colombia is a friendly place nowadays, -except for clearly defined regions such as Darién or Guaviare. Leticia, in the south-eastern corner is not a FARC-ridden place. Nor is it Venezuela where Hezbollah may act. I'm afraid for the jungle and Omri's probable exaggerated self-reliance by going alone somewhere, not for some other reason. In the rainforest one confronts infinite dangers, including hypotermia by night -believe it or not-. Take it from a Colombian. And getting lost is as easy as catching a flu. May G'd keep him safe, and may the rescue teams find this handsome youngster.
to go after you for justifying the murder of Israelis on the grounds that they probably.. whatever.. I have heard of people that would go after people like you because they might be encouraging the killing of Israelis... I hope this does not happen to you...
Leticia is on the Colombian side of the border with Brazil.A hot bed of all kind of illegal activities.We joke in Brazil,that's the place where the devil lost his virginity...Only a very crazy person would venture alone in a place like that...What a bloody waste!!!!!!!!!!!
I hope this is not what has happened. Israel holds the right to extrajudicial kill Palestinians and others who have fought against Israel. Remember the bombing of the Gaza police force at the beginning of Cast Lead. This young man was probably in the IDF. Every young Israeli has to go into the IDF. Therefore, someone may have chosen to kill him as having oppressed or fought against Palestine in the past. ie taking a decision for extrajudicial killing based on his probably involvement in the IDF. I hope this is not the case. . . .
Leticia is deep in the Amazon. A boat ride to Iquitos from Leticia is long and can be dangerous. It's less an area of FARC activity than simply deep rainforest, with all kind of dangers if one isn't careful to abide by safety precations or go with a guided tour. May he be found, or may he contact his family again asap.