Hundreds of people joined a march and rally in Tel Aviv on Wednesday to mark 850 days since the disappearance of Haimonut Cassau, who vanished in February 2024 from a absorption center in Safed when she was nine. Her family, social activists and relatives of hostages urged the state to widen the investigation and involve all security agencies to break the stalemate.
At the center of the rally was a speech by Haimonut’s father, Tesfai Cassau, delivered in Amharic and translated by Avihai Brodets. He said the family came to Israel out of faith and love, expecting a country that protects its children, and asked where his daughter is after 850 days. He stressed that Haimonut was taken inside Israel, not across a border by an enemy, and said the state cannot still tell the family it has no answer. Cassau added that a new daughter was born recently, but “no child replaces a child.” He said the family has not received any meaningful update, no real breakthrough, and no lead that could bring Haimonut back.
Cassau called for a special investigative team including police, Lahav 433 and the Shin Bet, and demanded immediate action, not another delay. His older daughter, Yeros Cassau, spoke through tears about the family’s life before the disappearance, saying Haimonut already spoke fluent Hebrew and that someone “stole her from us,” along with the family’s happiness and the light in her parents’ eyes.
Other speakers included Bat Sheva Yahalomi, whose son Eitan was kidnapped to Gaza and later freed in the first deal, and lawyer Dror Matityahu, who represents the Cassau family and the campaign to bring Haimonut home. Matityahu criticized the early handling of the case, saying the file reached Lahav 433 only about six months ago, but that new reports and leads are still arriving. He said every piece of information must be checked, noted that he had passed on a new lead just the day before, and warned that time has become the enemy because it erodes evidence and the chances of finding the truth. The rally ended with a joint call not to let Haimonut’s disappearance fade from public attention.
