JERUSALEM: The families of two Israelis missing in Gaza complained on Friday over their treatment by Israeli officials, saying the government is ignoring their anguish.

The remarks came a day after Israel’s stunning announcement that two men — Avraham Mengistu, an Israeli of Ethiopian descent, and a Bedouin from Israel’s Arab minority whose identity is still under a gag order — are being held captive in the Gaza Strip.

According to COGAT, the defense body that handles civilian issues with the Palestinians, Mengistu disappeared after he “independently” crossed the border fence and entered Gaza on Sept. 7, two weeks after the end of last summer’s war between the militant group Hamas and Israel.

The second man is a Bedouin Arab citizen from southern Israel. Israeli officials have refused to identify him or say how long he had been in Gaza or how he got there. They also would not say which group had him in custody.

On Friday, the man identified as a relative of the missing Bedouin told Israel Radio that “nobody is talking to us, this isn’t nice.” The relative’s identity falls under the same gag order.

Another man, only identified by his first name Khaid and said to be someone who knows the Bedouin man well, later told Army Radio that the Bedouin had gone missing several times before in Gaza but had been sent back.

Mengistu’s uncle, Tzachi Malasa, told Army Radio that he feels his family is being treated badly “because he’s black,” referring to his nephew.