Soldiers from the Israeli Navy’s elite Shayetet 13 unit wrapped up a day-long drill Tuesday, during which commandos practiced retaking a captured ship with hostages.
The exercise, dubbed “Sea Minister,” began on Monday, with the unit receiving information that an Israeli civilian vessel had been taken at sea with hostages aboard, a spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces said.
The unit then held a situation report, during it made plans to free the hostages and eliminate the terrorists. Following a failed attempt at negotiations, the commandos proceeded to take over the ship.
In addition to Shayetet 13, a number of missile boats also took part in the drill, as well as several ships currently carrying out security operations in the area, according to the IDF spokesperson.
A commando from the Israeli navy’s elite Shayetet 13 unit is seen during a drill off the coast of Israel on July 10-11, 2017. (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit)
Head of Naval Operations Brig. Gen. Ido Ben-Moshe said following completion of the drill that troops must continue to practice regularly in order to successfully defend the country and its citizens.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Editionby email and never miss our top stories
The navy “carried out its mission in an exercise on the maritime borders and will continue to train constantly and prepare its forces in order to ensure the security of the State of Israel,” he said.
Is our live election coverage important to you?
Are you relying on The Times of Israel for accurate and timely coverage of the 2026 Israeli election? If so, please join The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6/month, you will:
Support our independent journalists who are working around the clock to report political developments as they unfold;
Read ToI with a clear, ads-free experience on our site, apps and podcasts; and
Gain access to exclusive content shared only with the ToI Community, including our DocuNationstreaming film series and weekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
