13-Year-Old Found Dead After Being Swept Away in the Jordan River

A 13-year-old girl from northern Israel was found dead shortly before the start of Shabbat after being swept away in the Jordan River near Lehavot HaBashan. A 15-year-old girl who was also carried off by the current has not yet been found, and police and rescue teams continued large-scale searches in the area, with a helicopter called in to assist.

Initial details indicate that friends of the two girls alerted the Fire and Rescue Service after seeing them swept away by the current. Police said, “Many police forces are at the scene, including an Air Unit helicopter, Fire and Rescue, and volunteer rescue unit members,” adding that they were conducting extensive searches to locate the girls.

Northern District Fire and Rescue spokesperson Chief Superintendent Uri Cohen said swimmers in the river reported that three of their friends had begun drifting away. One girl managed to get out on her own shortly afterward, while the other two continued to be carried downstream.

Fire and Rescue Israel in the Northern District said firefighters, special rescue teams, police forces, and the police rescue unit were dispatched. Because of the complexity of the incident, teams from Lahava, the national special rescue unit, were also sent.