{
  "id": 1846402,
  "title": "Four arrested as police zero in on brawl before Eldar Dayan’s death",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/four-arrested-as-police-zero-in-on-brawl-before-eldar-dayans-death",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-18T11:34:30.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Ynetnews",
    "slug": "ynetnews",
    "url": "https://www.ynetnews.com/article/hjk2b6zwgg"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Four additional individuals have been apprehended in Israel in connection with the death of 23-year-old Eldar Dayan, as authorities intensify their focus on a violent altercation that occurred prior to his disappearance and the discovery of his body three weeks later. On Monday and Tuesday, the suspects were arrested near the Yarkon River in Petah Tikva, east of Tel Aviv. Police allege that the group involved in the fight kicked Dayan in the head, resulting in life-threatening bleeding that ultimately contributed to his demise. The authorities intend to extend the detained suspects' detention period by eight days. The arrests represent a crucial turn in an investigation that evolved from a high-profile missing-person case to a murder inquiry. According to the investigation, Dayan and his companions had scheduled a meeting with the other group near the river. The confrontation involved five people, with two apprehended on Monday and two more on Tuesday. The fifth individual remains at large. Investigators believe that Dayan and his friends fled in their vehicle, striking one of the other group's members with the car, leaving him with minor injuries. The four suspects were previously questioned by police regarding the fight, but they were rearrested after investigators suspected that the head injuries Dayan allegedly sustained during the altercation caused or contributed to his death. Two other suspects, Omri Peretz and Maxim Barberman, who were Dayan's companions on the night of his disappearance, had already been apprehended. They provided conflicting accounts of what transpired. One claimed they were attacked by unknown assailants, while the other denied this assertion. Dayan went missing on July 16, drawing widespread attention as he had spoken to his sister and girlfriend hours earlier, expressing concern about trouble and agreeing to discuss it later. His last known contact was via a message to them, stating, \"There's trouble, we'll talk.\" Following the search, an abandoned vehicle linked to Dayan was found in Petah Tikva, displaying shattered windows and bloodstains. Exactly three weeks after his last communication with his girlfriend, Dayan's body was identified approximately 200 meters away from where the vehicle had been abandoned. This discovery shifted the case from a missing-person investigation to a homicide probe. Peretz and Barberman are currently held on suspicion of Dayan's murder. The latest arrests have broadened the investigation to include the rival group involved in the confrontation preceding Dayan's disappearance, with police now investigating whether a kick to the head caused bleeding that may have led to his death. One member of the five-person group remains at large.",
  "summary": "Investigators suspect Dayan was kicked in the head during a prearranged confrontation near the Yarkon River, as one suspect remains at large and the murder probe widens",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}