The body of missing Israeli woman Shani Gabay has been found, the mayor of her hometown of Beit Shemesh said in a statement on Wednesday.
Mayor Aliza Bloch said, “It is with a heavy heart that I announce that we received bitter news today. After a long and painstaking search, the body of Shani Gabay was located.”
Ms. Gabay, 24, had been missing since August 13, when she disappeared in the Judean Hills near Jerusalem. She had reportedly gone for a run in the mountainous terrain and failed to return.
Large numbers of Israeli police, search and rescue teams, and volunteers had looked for Gabay since she went missing. After two weeks, her body was found in the Wadi Tamar nature reserve, near Beit Shemesh.
“In the name of the entire Beit Shemesh municipality, I express my deepest condolences to Shani’s family whose members made tremendous efforts during the past two weeks to bring Shani home,” Bloch said.
Gaya’s funeral is expected to take place on Thursday.
