At least 67 Palestinians are said to have been killed in the attacks, which hit 14 homes and three mosques, according to Reuters, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The Israeli Defense Forces have carried out an operation in Rafah where they retrieved two Hamas hostages.
“This was a complex rescue operation in the heart of Rafah, based on sensitive and high-quality intelligence obtained by the Intelligence Department and the Shin Bet,” spokesman Daniel Hagari said in a statement.
Benjamin Netanyahu says on Monday that Israel will do everything to free the remaining hostages and that military pressure will be maintained until Hamas is defeated.
– Only military pressure and complete victory will result in the release of all our hostages, says a statement from the prime minister’s office.
The Palestinian Civil Defense is searching for people in the ruins after Monday’s attack.
Photo: Reuters
Over 1.2 million Palestinians have fled to the small city on the border with Egypt to avoid Israeli attacks further north in Gaza. The Palestinians live in tents in makeshift refugee camps.
The city, which once had around 280,000 inhabitants, now houses 1.5 million Palestinians. The majority are internally displaced persons fleeing the bombs.
The IDF rescued two hostages
The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) confirms that it has carried out a number of airstrikes which have now ended.
Furthermore, it is said that they have hit “terrorist targets in the Shaboura area”.
Fernandi Simon Marman was abducted by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yizhak on 7 October last year. Now he has been rescued from the Gaza Strip.
Foto: Courtesy of Bring Them Home Now / Reuters
The special operation was a collaboration between the IDF, the Shin Bet security service and special police. The operation resulted in the retrieval of two hostages.
– Two Israeli hostages have been rescued during a night mission in Rafah. They are both in good condition and were transferred for further medical examination in Israel, writes The Israeli Defense Forces on Xformerly Twitter.
The men have been named as 60-year-old Fernandi Simon Marman and 70-year-old Louis Har, reports the AP news agency. Both were abducted from Kibbutz Nir Yizhak in the terrorist attack against Israel on 7 October last year.
According to the IDF, the two were held captive in an apartment in Rafah and were among the more than 130 hostages still held captive by Hamas.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant described the rescue operation as “impressive”.
– We will continue to fulfill our duty to return the abducted, he said on Monday.
Louis Har was abducted by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yizhak on 7 October last year. Now he has been rescued from the Gaza Strip.
Foto: Courtesy of Bring Them Home Now / Reuters
The two freed hostages are Israeli-Argentinians with dual citizenship. Now Argentine President Javier Milei is thanking the IDF for saving them.
– The President’s Office thanks the Israeli Defense Forces, La Shabak and the Israeli Police for completing the rescue of Argentines Fernando Simon Marman and Louis Har, writes the President in a message on Xformerly Twitter.
The president’s office further writes that during his visit to Israel, Javier Milei spoke with President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about the release of each of the Argentine hostages.
Reunited
Director Arnon Afek at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel confirms to Reuters that they have taken care of the hostages.
– I am very happy to announce that last night two released hostages landed here at Israel’s largest hospital. They were taken to the emergency room and investigations show that their condition is stable, he tells the news agency.
Afek goes on to say that they will be kept at the hospital in the coming days for medical supervision.
The photo from the Israeli Defense Forces shows the military helicopter that transported the two freed hostages to the Sheba Medical Center in Israel.
Photo: AFP
On Monday morning, the two freed hostages were reunited with their families after more than four months in captivity.
Idan Begerano, son-in-law of Louis Har, tells Reuters that the family arrived at the hospital at five o’clock on Monday morning.
– Lots of tears and hugs. We are so happy to see them again. It has been 128 very tough days. Now we want to return to a normal life, said the relative outside the hospital.
– The job is not finished. We are happy today, but we have not won. This is one step closer to bringing home the remaining hostages. It doesn’t matter if they are children, women, men, elderly. Everyone must go home as soon as possible, he says.
Feared ground invasion
Residents of Rafah were awakened by heavy bombardment which led to panic.
People in the area who Reuters spoke to via messaging services said they feared Israel had launched a ground invasion of Rafah.
The BBC reports that several hundred families fled to hospitals in desperation to find a safe place to stay.
The residents now fear that Israel will send soldiers into the densely populated city.
A journalist from the AP news agency who is in Rafah reports that the area around the Kuwaiti hospital in the city was hit.
Several of those injured in last night’s attack have been taken to hospital.
– Suddenly we received hundreds of patients within an hour. Both wounded and dead, doctor Jamal Al-Hams tells AP.
Smoke rises from the town of Rafah in the far south of the Gaza Strip after Israeli airstrikes on the night of Monday.
Photo: SAID KHATIB / AFP
AFP journalists and other witnesses in the city say that a series of loud bangs were heard and that smoke has risen over the city.
Residents told Reuters that planes, tanks and warships were used in the attack.
Will invade the city
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that he will launch a ground invasion against Rafah. He says Israel will do this to wipe out Hamas.
Norway, the EU and a number of aid organizations have warned of catastrophic consequences if the ground invasion becomes a reality.
US President Joe Biden has also asked Netanyahu to protect civilians.
As recently as Sunday, Biden warned Netanyahu against conducting a military offensive against Rafah without a plan to secure the civilian population.
US President Joe Biden in a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Sunday.
Foto: EVELYN HOCKSTEIN / Reuters
Before previous Israeli attacks on cities in the Gaza Strip, Israel has ordered civilians to evacuate, without presenting any evacuation plans.
The Hamas-run al-Aqsa TV channel quoted a Hamas leader as saying on Sunday that any ground offensive in Rafah would destroy the prisoner exchange negotiations.
2024-02-12 09:49:47
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