War Day 246: Four Hostages Freed, Hezbollah Attacks Escalate

War Summary, Day Two Hundred and Forty Six: Four hostages freed, Qatar and Egypt threatening Hamas, significant advances in Rafah, and Hezbollah escalates even further.

By Mrs. Bruria Efune

120 held captive in Gaza.
45 hostages confirmed murdered in Gaza.
116 hostages freed.
19 hostage bodies rescued.
1,541 Israelis killed.
296 fallen soldiers in the battle in Gaza.
15 fallen soldiers in Northern Israel.
7 fallen soldiers in Judea & Samaria.
14,400 estimated rockets fired at Israel.
90,000 Israelis displaced from their homes.
1 Jewish nation united in prayer, charity, and good deeds.

Top Headlines:

• Four hostages freed
• Qatar and Egypt threatening Hamas
• Significant advances in Rafah
• Hezbollah escalates even further

Hostage Updates:

In a miraculous and daring operation, the ID has rescued:

Noa Argamani, 25
Almog Meir, 21
Andrey Kozlov, 27
Shlomi Ziv, 40

Unverified reports in Gaza claim that the Yamam forces who rescued the hostages came in aid trucks, undertake guise of delivering “furniture” for the displaced, and the driver was in civilian clothing.

PM Netanyahu described the risks of the operation saying “the distance between success and failure was as thin as a hair’s breadth.”

The New York Times claims that the US assisted with intelligence for the operation to free he hostages.

The US is still trying to push for the hostage release and ceasefire deal. US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, said: ”The cease-fire proposal that Biden talked about will lead to the release of all the hostages and aid to Gaza. The only thing stopping us from reaching a cease-fire is Hamas. It’s time for them to accept the deal.”

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Qatar and Egypt have made it clear to the Hamas leadership that they are expected to face sanctions, asset freezes, deportation from Doha, and even possible arrests—if they do not agree to the Israeli proposal for a ceasefire.

Gaza Front Updates:

Hamas fired three barrages at communities near the Gaza border, including Sderot. Multiple rockets fell short, and landed in Northern Gaza.

The IDF announced the name of one hero who fell in battle while rescuing hostages in Nuseirat:

Chief Inspector Arnon Zamora, 36, from Yad Mordechai. Survived by his wife and two children.

On October 7th, Arnon, as part of the standby unit for Kibbutz Yad Mordechai, eliminated 37 terrorists and saved the community. He then went on with his soldiers and fought in Nachal Oz and then Be’eri, saving countless lives. He led many secret missions since then, as part of the elite Yamam counterterrorism unit.

Four divisions of IDF troops are currently operating in Gaza: part of the 98th in east Bureij and east Deir al-Balah, the 99th Division along the Netzarim Corridor and in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City; The Gaza Division in various areas in Gaza on pinpoint operations in areas such as Beit Hanoun and the buffer zone; and the 162nd Division in Rafah and along the Philadelphi Corridor.

Troops in east Deir al-Balah and east al-Bureij continued locating tunnel shafts, ammunition, and rocket launchers, and called in multiple airstrikes against Hamas targets, including terror groups. The operation has not yet been wrapped up, but has so far successfully cleared many Hamas sites, and successfully drew many terrorists out of Nuseirat ahead of the hostage rescue operation.

IDF soldiers remain along the Netzarim Corridor, which divides the north and south of Gaza, and now has a fully paved IDF military road and three semi-permanent IDF bases. Hamas continuously attempts to attack the soldiers, who fire back, and have eliminated several terrorists today, including a mortar-launching squad.

The IDF is continuing with cautious but very thorough activity in Rafah, and has now taken over 37% of the city, including the entire Philadelphi Corridor. Today troops reached Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighborhood, hitting the second out of four Hamas battalions in Rafah (the first one being the Yabna battalion, which mostly defended the Philadelphi Corridor). They eliminated a number of terrorists, found weapons, and found important tunnels.

An airstrike in Rafah eliminated Salame Muhammad Abu Ajaj, a senior Hamas commander in the general security forces.

Gaza Humanitarian Efforts Updates:

The IDF has brought in additional forces in order to help secure the US-built JLOTS floating pier off the coast of Central Gaza. The pier (which the US was supposed to manage, with the IDF holding only the port on coast), was built to deliver humanitarian aid in Gaza, but has had a very rough start, and fell apart not long after beginning operations.

The IDF announced the opening of the 11th field hospital in Gaza, this one in the Al Mawasi humanitarian area.

On Thursday, June 6th:
75 humanitarian aid trucks were transferred to Gaza.
The content of 1,100 aid trucks remained waiting to be picked up by UN aid agencies
12 tankers of fuel designated for the operation of essential infrastructure in Gaza, entered Gaza
8 aid trucks were coordinated to northern Gaza.

Northern Front Updates:

Hezbollah continued with heavy fire on Northern Israel, and reached further than usual—seemingly comfortable knowing that Israel is under heavy pressure not to respond on a large scale for the time being. Most of the rockets and drones which were headed towards populated areas were intercepted by IDF air defenses, but a few made it through. One attack drone reached as far at the Jezebel Valley, near Nazareth, and struck an open area after the IDF failed to intercept the drone. Sirens also sounded in Tzfat (Safed). Another drone was intercepted off the coast of Nahariya.

Anti-tank guided missiles hit the border communities of Malkia and Misgav Am, causing heavy damage and fires.ezbollah claimed to have used heavy “Falaq-2” rockets for the first time. Firefighters were still working late into the night.

The IDF in turn attacked a large number of Hezbollah positions in Southern Gaza, with airstrikes and shelling, and hit sources of fire, as well as terrorist cells.

Houthi & Iraqi War Front Updates

Sources in Yemen report that at least 30 workers of the United Nations and other civil aid organizations were arrested by the Houthis in the capital city of Sana’a.

This morning, Shiite militias in Iraq took responsibility for launching a suicide drone towards Israel. A few minutes later, sirens were triggered in the Northern Golan, alerting to a drone infiltration.

Judea and Samaria Updates:

A Molotov cocktail was thrown at a Jewish home in Beit Hanina, near Jerusalem.

The IDF has been carrying out counterterrorism operations in Abate (east of Tulkarm), Jenin, and Jericho. There are reports of heavy exchanges of fire.

International Updates:

The President of Colombia announced that the country will stop exporting coal to Israel.