From disappearance, to the train to Germany - and the flight to Argentina: The suspected route of the missing women

What began as an innocent family birthday trip turned within a few days into a complex international drama spanning continents: a journey full of border crossings, train stations, and aviation systems – from Israel to the Czech Republic, through Austria and Germany, up to reports of a flight across the ocean to South America. The mysterious disappearance of Meli and Liel Yaalomi led to a multi-agency investigation conducted in parallel in several locations in Europe, with the participation of the Vienna police, Interpol, and Lahav 433, as investigators try to connect the pieces of the puzzle behind the chain of secret movements.

Below is the reconstruction of the suspected route being checked in the investigation:

• Tuesday, August 4 – The takeoff from Israel to Prague: Meli and Liel took off from Ben Gurion Airport to the capital of the Czech Republic, as part of a trip planned by the daughter Liel as a surprise for her mother's 50th birthday.

• The train crossing to Austria and the stay in Vienna: From Prague, the two continued by train to Vienna and stayed in an Airbnb apartment.

• Leaving the rental apartment: In footage from security cameras, the two were seen leaving the apartment carrying their personal belongings, without the accompaniment of another person and without external evidence of coercion. This finding is at the basis of the official statement provided by the Vienna police, according to which the mother and daughter left the country's borders of their own free will.

• Failure to show up for the return flight to Israel: Contact with the two was cut off over the weekend, and concern arose after they did not show up for their planned return flight from Prague with Wizz Air to Ben Gurion Airport.

• Saturday, 09:30 – The last cellular signal: The last cellular geolocation from the two's phones was picked up on Saturday at 09:30 in the area of the train station in Vienna. Consequently, the police assessed that the two boarded a train at this station that left towards Germany.

• The report on the trip to Germany and the departure from Europe: The Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung reported that the two crossed the border into Germany by train and from there left the European continent. The suspected escape destination was South America.

• The location in the passenger lists to Argentina: As we first reported on N12, a check of the systems in Germany revealed that the names of the two were indeed registered on the passenger list of a Lufthansa flight that took off from Germany and landed in Argentina.

Police and family response

The investigation is being conducted under a gag order. A senior police official told News 12:

"The starting point of this investigation is that Meli and Liel are alive. There is some progress in the investigation, and as of this moment, it teaches us that the nationalistic background and the health background are weakening significantly. Despite this, we continue to check all directions."

The Vienna police conducted checks in hospitals but refrained from opening an official public search in the absence of legal grounds. The family members of Meli and Liel continue to fund private search efforts and demand that the authorities not rule out any possibility, including terror.

The affair was accompanied in recent days by a financial tremor, against the background of Meli's role at the retail headquarters of Bank Jerusalem. Rumors on social media linking her disappearance to her workplace caused a drop in the bank's stock. The bank's management published an official statement clarifying that a thorough check ruled out any suspicion of embezzlement.