President Isaac Herzog met Tuesday at his official residence with relatives of Haymanut Kasau, a young Ethiopian-Israeli girl who has been missing for approximately two and a half years.
During the meeting, Herzog informed the family of a significant development: Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar confirmed in a recent conversation that Israel's internal security service has become involved in the investigation. The Shin Bet's participation follows a formal request from the Israel Police and involves full operational cooperation between the agencies.
"Haimanot is a daughter of all the people of Israel, and all of Israel is deeply concerned for her," Herzog told the family members. "The State of Israel is making every effort to locate Haimanot using all available resources. This is at the top of law enforcement's priorities."
The president added that he had spoken directly with Shin Bet director Ronen Bar, who confirmed the agency's recent entry into the case. "The Shin Bet is involved in the file and has entered with full force to contribute in every way to locating Haimanot," Herzog said. "I thank the Israel Police, which is making an enormous effort together with the Shin Bet, and I hope we will receive good news."
Haymanut's father, Tsfai Kasau, addressed the president during the meeting: "We have made every effort and met with the relevant authorities. We are demanding Shin Bet intervention as quickly as possible. We fear there is difficulty and discrimination because of language barriers or because of skin color."
Haymanut's sister, Yiros Kasau, spoke emotionally about the family's ordeal: "We don't deserve to go through what we're going through. Haymanut disappeared during wartime, and we know that if the Shin Bet enters the picture, it will be the end of our suffering. My family deserves to rejoice and hug her again. I'm a young woman of 20 and I want to start living my life. Since 11th grade, instead of living like girls my age, I've been occupied only with searches and the struggle for my sister. Haimanot is a small child and we don't know what she's going through."
Tsfai Bishau, who accompanies the family in their efforts, expressed gratitude while emphasizing the ongoing nature of the search: "Thank you to the honorable president and thank you also to the people of Israel who have been with us in this two-and-a-half-year struggle. It's not over yet, we need you in this fight. I hope we will celebrate Haymanut bat mitzvah already at home, together with the family here in Jerusalem. The news that the president shared with us today is very important to us. We believe and are optimistic that Haymanut is alive and she needs to return to her home."
