From the Liveblog of
Monday, February 12, 2024
IDF releases footage of its strikes in Rafah during extraction of hostages by special forces
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The IDF releases footage from its overnight hostage rescue in southern Gaza’s Rafah, as well as of strikes in the area amid the extraction of Fernando Simon Marman and Norberto Louis Har by special forces.
Members of the Shin Bet security agency and police’s elite Yamam counterterrorism unit arrived quietly at the home in Rafah at around 1 a.m., where Marman and Har were being held.
At 1:49 a.m., the forces breached the second-floor apartment with explosives, and within moments killed three terrorists guarding the hostages.
Within one minute of the rescue, the Israeli Air Force carried out massive airstrikes against Hamas terrorists in the area of the operation, to aid in the extraction.
The two hostages were taken by the forces in armored vehicles out of Rafah, then put in a military helicopter that brought them to Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan for examination, where both were listed in good condition.
