JERUSALEM, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Israeli authorities were searching for survivors after an inflatable boat washed up on a beach in central Israel on Sunday morning.

The police said in a statement that the searches were initiated after passports and belongings of eight people, including children, were found in the empty rubber boat. According to the statement, the missing people are Somali and Turkish nationals.

Later, state-owned Kan TV news reported that the Israeli Navy had joined the searches.

The boat was found on the Mediterranean shore of Netanya, a coastal city north of Tel Aviv. It was not immediately clear if there were survivors.