‘Time is not on our side’ – Israeli woman missing in Greece

Michal Peleg, 66, was last seen near her Crete home before disappearing without a trace.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

Israeli investigators are searching for an Israeli woman who went missing in Greece last week, with her family stressing that that they are very concerned for her safety.

Michal Peleg, 66, has not contacted her family in Israel since last Wednesday. Peleg lives for several months a year on the island of Crete, and was scheduled to return for a visit to Israel this week.

She was last seen by neighbors near her home in the village of Kavousi. Peleg’s family said that she often goes hiking and swimming in the area.

Israeli insurance company Harel, where Peleg is a policyholder, has dispatched a search team to Greece to attempt to locate her.

“There is a lot of concern, of course,” Peleg’s former brother-in-law, Yoav Rappaport, told Hebrew-language outlet Walla.

“She always keeps in touch [with the family] by phone, and it is unusual for her to disappear like this,” he said.

“We fear that she got into some kind of trouble while traveling in the area. Time is not on our side, and this increases our concern even more.”

In a media statement, the Foreign Ministry’s Department of Israelis in Distress Abroad said that they were in “continuous contact” with Peleg’s family.

The ministry added that it was partnering with “Interpol, investigators from Harel [Insurance], and with representatives of the local police who sent out search teams. We hope that the missing woman will be found safe and sound soon.”

A short flight away from Israel, thousands of Israelis are believed to have relocated to Greece in recent years.

According to repatriation website Investment Visa, some 70 percent of investment visas for foreigners in the Thessaloniki area are obtained by Israeli nationals.

Approximately 600 Jews are believed to live on Crete, though its unclear how many of them hold Israeli citizenship.