An Israeli yacht carrying four people has vanished in the Mediterranean during a severe storm, triggering an expanding international rescue operation as teams from Cyprus, Greece, and Israel scramble to locate the missing vessel amid questions about how it received clearance to sail in such dangerous conditions.
Cyprus has ramped up the hunt on Wednesday for the Israeli yacht that set sail from Ashdod two days ago and vanished on its way to the island. Contact was severed two days ago near Paphos.
The Greek Coast Guard announced that as the weather improves, Greek Navy planes and helicopters will join the afternoon search for the missing Israeli yacht, sweeping the waters between Cyprus and Crete. At the same time, Cypriot officials indicated that wind patterns suggest the yacht may have drifted south toward Egypt's coastline, prompting searches in that direction as well. The official noted that Wednesday's search will stretch toward Israel, suggesting the skipper may have turned back due to worsening conditions.
The missing passengers include three friends from Kafr Shibli Umm al-Ghanem in northern Israel (an Arab village in the Galilee), while the fourth person, according to the yacht company, lives in the Krayot (the cluster of towns north of Haifa).
The yacht vanished roughly 90 nautical miles (167 kilometers) off Paphos on the island's southern coast. Cyprus has triggered the Nearchos protocol, redirecting passing vessels to the yacht's projected path to aid the search. The operation involves Cypriot ships and helicopters from British military installations on the island.
Cyprus port authorities described the yacht's skipper, a 41-year-old Israeli, as highly experienced with multiple prior visits to the island. A port official told local journalists he was baffled that Israeli authorities cleared the vessel to sail in such brutal weather. "During Storm Byron, we halted nearly all departures of small craft from the island," the official said.
Israel's Foreign Ministry confirmed that "Israeli, Greek, and Cypriot forces are coordinating search operations. The ministry's Division for Israelis Abroad and embassies in Cyprus and Greece remain in constant contact with the families, working nonstop on the situation."
