Israel’s navy presented a potential solution to save the trapped Thai boys and their soccer coach. Several Israelis have volunteered to help.
Israel’s Ambassador to Thailand Meir Shlomo said Sunday that Israel’s navy has found a potential rescue solution for 12 boys, ages 11-16, and their 25-year-old soccer coach, who have been trapped in a cave for two weeks.
Thai authorities said that the key part of the rescue operation is underway. Four have already made it out safely.
“We presented the plan to the Thai governor and to the lead diver responsible for rescue operations,” Shlomo told Army Radio Sunday. “Use of the solution depends on adjusting it to the terrain.”
“I was asked to arrive here by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and see what kind of aid Israel can offer to its friend Thailand,” the ambassador said.
On Saturday, Shlomo visited the site of the rescue efforts at the Tham Luang cave complex, where he said he met several Israelis who volunteered to help and were “doing a nice job.”
Israeli rescuers have been part of the international effort to extract the children from the flooded cave, and Israeli technology has helped maintain communication between the outside world and the trapped boys.
In a statement released late Sunday afternoon, Chiang Rai acting Gov. Narongsak Osatanakorn said that “divers will work with medics in the cave to assess the boys’ health before determining who will come out first.”
“They cannot decide how many of them will be able to come out for the first operation. Based on the complexity and difficulty of the cave environment, it is unknown how long it might take and how many children would exit the cave,” he added.
The rescue operation began at 10 a.m. Sunday when expert divers entered the cave. Trips from the entrance to where the team is trapped and back takes about 11 hours.
Rescuers say it may take two-to-four days for the entire team to reach safety, depending on conditions inside the cave.