Bodies of three Israeli youths found near Hebron

Israeli troops have found the bodies of three yeshiva seminary students in a field north of the West Bank city of Hebron, 2½ weeks after they were seized by Hamas militants.

Naftali Fraenkel and Gil-Ad Shaer, both 16, and Eyal Yifrah, (19), were kidnapped while hitching in the West Bank at night, a 10-minute drive from where the bodies were discovered. Israeli military sources believe they were killed shortly after they were seized.

Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu convened his security cabinet for an emergency session last night.

It remains to be seen how Israel will respond to the discovery of the bodies, but speculation was rife that Israel will deport West Bank Hamas militants to Gaza and may target the Hamas leadership in Gaza.

Knessetspeaker Yuli Edelstein called for an “uncompromising war” against terror in general and against Hamas in particular.

“It’s time for the Palestinians to also understand that Hamas will lead them to annihilation,” he said.

Transport minister Yisrael Katz called for a firm response: “We must act decisively and destroy the Hamas infrastructure in the West Bank and Gaza. We must teach Hamas a lesson they will never forget.”

The US state department urged Israel and the Palestinians to exercise restraint and continue security co-operation.

Following the kidnapping, a massive search operation was launched in the West Bank involving thousands of troops and focusing on Hebron in the southern West Bank.

Hamas suspects

Mr Netanyahu blamed the Islamist Hamas for the kidnapping and several days ago Israel released the names of two suspects, both Hamas militants from Hebron who have served Israeli jail terms in the past. The two are still at large.

During the search operation, 450 Hamas activists were arrested, including most of the organisation’s West Bank political leadership.

The offices of charity bodies and cultural organisations linked to Hamas were also raided. The Israeli government also launched a campaign to mobilise international support for the campaign to locate the teenagers, including a massive social media drive using the hashtag #BringBackOurBoys.

The night before the bodies were found, tens of thousands attended a rally in Tel Aviv under the banner “Singing Together for Their Return”.

Once it became clear to Israel that Hamas was behind the kidnapping, Mr Netanyahu urged Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to dissolve the Hamas-backed national unity government, arguing that it was impossible to be committed to peace while sitting with a group that kidnaps Israelis.

Mr Abbas condemned the abduction in clear-cut terms, warning there would be implications for the unity agreement if it transpired that Hamas was indeed behind the kidnapping.