KEY POINTS
- Hamas says 2 Israeli hostages killed in Israeli bombardment
- Bahraini hackers claim to have 'seized' US Navy 5th Fleet documents
- Iranian semi-official Tasnim news retracts report on 9 Pakistanis killed in Iran
It's Day 129 of the Israel-Hamas war. A Bahraini hacker group claimed they breached the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet system which is responsible for around 2.5 million square miles that include the Red and Arabian Seas.
Egypt, a key mediator alongside Qatar in talks for a ceasefire agreement, reportedly issued an ultimatum to Hamas, telling the Palestinian terror group that it has two weeks to reach a truce deal or face the Israel Defense Forces' (IDF) ground invasion of Rafah in southern Gaza.
The IDF announced that ground troops rescued two elderly hostages who were being held by a Palestinian faction in Rafah, an overcrowded city where more than a million Gaza civilians have sought refuge since the war started.
- 'Enough' hostages still in Gaza to 'warrant' Israel's offensive: Netanyahu
- Houthis claim attack on 'American' bulk carrier Star Iris
- Vessel attacked off Yemen earlier Monday has reported 'minor damage': UKMTO
- Netherlands ordered to halt F-35 parts exports to Israel within 7 days
- Local Hezbollah leader, one other member, killed in Israeli drone strike: Arab media
- Rafah raid will be conducted 'when conditions allow': IDF spokesperson's unit chief
In Israel's northern border with Lebanon, Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah said the Iranian-backed militant group attacked five Israeli army assets throughout Sunday. He said Hezbollah, a Hamas ally based in Lebanon, has carried out over 1,000 operations targeting Israel since the war started.
Attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea persist amid ongoing unrest in the region. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Monday that a merchant ship had been targeted by two missiles.
Over the weekend, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces conducted "self-defense strikes" against missiles and unmanned surface vessels (USVs) in areas of Yemen controlled by the Yemeni Houthi rebel militia, another Iranian-backed terror group that has been running amok in the Red Sea since mid-November.
Despite international calls for restraint in Rafah, including from Israel's main western ally, the U.S., Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signaled determination in the Israeli army's supposed plan to conduct a ground raid in the southern city. His resolute stance on the fighting in Gaza stems from decades of violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Meanwhile, the embattled United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) denied that it was aware a Hamas tunnel was constructed under its Gaza City headquarters after the IDF uncovered a tunnel system beneath the facility.
The four-month war started on Oct. 7, when Hamas operatives invaded Israel, murdering more than 1,200 Israelis and foreigners. The group also abducted some 240 hostages, over 130 of which are still being held in Gaza.
Israeli army will conduct ground operation in Rafah 'when conditions allow': Top IDF official
Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, chief of the IDF spokesperson's unit, on Monday said the two elderly hostages rescued by Israeli ground troops from Rafah were "intentionally in the middle of a civilian neighborhood, inside a civilian building to try and prevent us from rescuing them."
Hagari said the hostages were held in harsh conditions. They went through medical examination and have finally been reunited with their families in Israel.
Addressing concerns regarding Israel's plan to launch a ground offensive in the overcrowded city of Rafah, Hagari said Monday's rescue mission "underscores the importance of our ground operation in Gaza, including Rafah, when conditions allow." He said the Israeli army has a "moral obligation" to bring all of the country's hostages back home.
“This rescue mission underscores the importance of our ground operation in Gaza. We have a moral obligation to bring all our hostages home, an obligation that we will continue doing everything in our power to fulfill.”
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) February 12, 2024
Watch the full statement by IDF Spokesperson RAdl. Daniel… pic.twitter.com/M29G46pJw1
