Yamam head helped stave off Hamas from reaching central Israel after learning that son was killed at Nova rave

The head of the police’s Yamam counter-terrorism unit — whose identity is barred from publication is set to retire and has accepted a job at a private Israeli intelligence agency after commanding this week’s hostage rescue operation.

On October 7, Channel 12 reports, Yamam lost nine members in the fighting in Israel.

The head of Yamam — who is referred to only as Het — lost his son at the Supernova festival.

Het was fighting near Yad Mordechai, north of Gaza, that day when he was told his son had been killed.

Yisrael Ziv, the former IDF head of operations who also fought in the south that day and called him at one point, says Het gave him a quick overview of the ongoing battle against Hamas inside Israel.

“I asked him how he was doing,” Ziv recalls to Channel 12. “He said, ‘not so good.’ I said, ‘why, what happened?’ He said, ‘I lost my son this morning.’ I said, ‘Are you ok, are you able to fight?’ “He said, ‘What are you talking about? I’m fighting with full force.'”

Channel 12 says Het and other forces at Yad Mordechai prevented 200 Hamas gunmen heading north toward Rishon Lezion and the central Dan region.