Elchanan Tannenbaum, St.-Sgt. Benny Avraham, St.-Sgt. Omar Sawaid and Sgt. Adi Avitan (clockwise from top right), kidnapped by the Hizbullah in October 2000. (IDF Spokesman)

	Israel and the International Red Cross
	Background: Kidnappings and bargaining chips
	Full closure for MIAs Jerusalem Post
	International Coalition for Missing Israeli Soldiers
	International Committee of the Red Cross
	Israel Defense Forces
	Magen David Adom

The family members met with United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, attended a rally of solidarity organized by Jewish youth organizations outside the Lebanese consulate, and later held a joint press conference with New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and city council speaker Peter Vallone.

"Today marks the 206th day that we have not received any

"Release information about our children, and make negotiations to release them" - Haim Avraham, father of kidnapped soldier

piece of information from our sons, and we're here to ask Mr. Annan to help us do whatever he can," Yaakov Avitan told Reuters Television in an interview.

According to a Jerusalem Post report, "the meetings are part of a reinvigorated campaign by the families and their supporters to exert international pressure on Hizbullah, which kidnapped St.-Sgt. Benny Avraham, St.-Sgt. Omar Sawaid, and Sgt. Adi Avitan, as well as civilian businessman Elchanan Tannenbaum."

Mayor Giuliani called on the international community to bring renewed pressure on the Hizbullah to release the hostages. "In the interim, representatives of the International Red Cross (ICRC) must be allowed to visit with the hostages and evaluate their condition," Giuliani said.

According to Vincent Lusser, Media Relations Officer for the International Red Cross, "the ICRC is sparing no effort to gain access to the four men in order to assess their state of health and conditions of detention, and to bring news to their families."

Lusser added, "The ICRC is acting as a neutral intermediary between the Israeli authorities and the Hizbullah with a view to facilitating a solution based on humanitarian considerations." Despite these efforts, the ICRC has not managed to access the captured men.

Ben Eliezer says ICRC failed in its main task
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer met on Monday with Werner Kaspar, head of the ICRC's Middle East Operations, to get an update on the status of Israel's three kidnapped soldiers and the civilian being held by the Hizbullah. According to the Defense Minister's Media Adviser, Ben Eliezer told the ICRC that the organization had failed in its main task - obtaining signs of life from the abducted men.

A few days before, Kaspar had met with the Hizbullah's second senior-most leader, Sheikh Na'im Qassam, in efforts to obtain access to the kidnapped soldiers. According to Kaspar, the Hizbullah demanded that Israel release Lebanese and other prisoners it is holding in exchange for access, but the ICRC said it had an unconditional right to visit the men.

In New York, Haim Avraham, father of one of the kidnapped soldiers, appealed directly to the Hizbullah. "Act as human beings and release information about our children, and make negotiations to release them. Please."

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