"The diamonds have taken off": This is how the voices of coordination were heard in the Southern Command's forward command post yesterday Saturday during the operation to free the four hostages from Nuseirat. In the tense moments, Major General Yaron Finkelman and 98th Division Commander Brigadier General Dan Goldfus, sat in the command and division's forward command post, remotely monitoring Operation Arnon, named in honor of Arnon Zmora who was killed in the operation.
Video: The command center during the operation / Credit: IDF
During the operation, the Paratroopers Brigade combat team led the hostage rescue, working under fire alongside special forces. They transferred the hostages to a helicopter pickup point in the heart of the Gaza Strip.
Video: The hostages being whisked into safety, as seen from the helmet cameras / IDF
The rescue team included fighters from the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Unit, the Mobility Unit (5515), Shayetet 13 naval commandos, the Givati Reconnaissance Unit, and an armored battalion (532).
EXCLUSIVE FOOTAGE from the helicopter that brought Noa back home from Hamas captivity: pic.twitter.com/PQypAUwRba
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2024
The battle to rescue the four hostages – Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Shlomi Ziv, and Andrey Kozlov – began days earlier under the 98th Division. The Kfir Brigade combat team, including paratroopers and a special Duvdevan Unit force, operated in the area for several days. The Israeli Air Force struck dozens of Hamas targets for days, while the 7th Armored Brigade combat team, comprising armored forces, engineering units, and Rotem Battalion fighters, eliminated terrorists and destroyed terror infrastructure to enable the rescue.
The operation was launched after weeks of precise intelligence gathering by the Shin Bet and the IDF Military Intelligence Directorate's Hostages Command. They compiled preliminary information on the hostages' locations in two sites and the intelligence necessary for the operational conditions of the rescue.
