The search for a 17-year-old missing off Sanz Beach in Natanya continues into its seventh day, with ZAKA Search & Rescue’s Dive Unit operating nonstop alongside national emergency forces in an ongoing maritime search effort.

Since the initial drowning incident last Friday, ZAKA divers have worked in coordination with Israel Police maritime units and Fire & Rescue’s Lahava Unit, supported by aerial drone teams. The search has evolved in response to changing sea conditions and updated drift analysis, with search areas adjusted and extended northward along the coastline.

During periods of calmer seas, divers have entered deeper waters, including rocky seabed areas identified as part of the search zone. Drone teams and shoreline searchers have maintained continuous operations, with searches conducted both offshore and along the coast.

Dozens of volunteers remain actively part of the search, including specialized mapping and analysis units, jet ski operators, and shoreline search teams.

“We are continuing to operate with full precision and full commitment,” said ZAKA Search & Rescue Chief of Operations Chaim Weingarten. “The conditions change so we adapt, expanding dive depth, adjusting search sectors, and integrating intelligence from currents and mapping systems. This is a highly structured professional search effort, and we will continue without pause until the mission is complete.”

The ongoing operation also reflects the growth of ZAKA’s Dive Unit over the past two decades. The capability was established after a case in 2006 in which a missing person could not be located due to the absence of a dedicated civilian dive response unit. In the years that followed, ZAKA built a national network of volunteer divers, eventually refining the unit into a smaller, highly trained operational group focused on underwater search, rescue and recovery.

Today, the Dive Unit operates as a specialized component within ZAKA Search & Rescue, integrating trained divers with mapping capabilities, maritime support and coordinated command structures to support complex water-based searches.

“We learned over the years that underwater search is not about manpower alone, it is about precision, experience and judgment,” added Weingarten.

“ZAKA Search & Rescue’s Dive Unit operates at full capacity in extremely demanding conditions while maintaining full coordination with all national rescue agencies,” said ZAKA Search & Rescue CEO Dubi Weissenstern. “This is a long-duration high-complexity search. Our volunteers understand the human weight behind it and continue to operate with professionalism and determination.”

“Whether in large-scale disasters or prolonged search operations like this one, our incredible volunteers remain committed to bringing clarity and dignity where uncertainty remains,” said ZAKA Search & Rescue U.S. Executive Director Moshe Rozenberg. “The fact that this search continues nonstop for days reflects both the difficulty of the environment and the commitment of the volunteers in the field.”

The search operation in Netanya remains ongoing, with coordinated efforts continuing across the sea and shoreline.