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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">Killing the Captives - What Happened in Israel’s Failed Rescue Attempt in Gaza</h1>December 9, 2023</div>
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<img src="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Baruch_Saar_Weapons.png" alt="" title="Baruch_Saar_Weapons" width="440" height="295" style="margin-right: 25px;">
Al-Qassam said it seized a rifle and communication devices from one of the attacking soldiers. (Photo: video grab)
<p><strong>By <a href="https://www.palestinechronicle.com/writers/palestine-chronicle-editors" title="Display all articles for Palestine Chronicle Editors">Palestine Chronicle Editors</a></strong></p>
<blockquote>
<h3><b>Instead of rescuing Saar Baruch, an Israeli military force killed
him. This episode is likely to make Netanyahu’s life even more
difficult. </b></h3>
</blockquote>
<p><span>In the early hours of Friday, Al-Qassam Brigades, the military
wing of the Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas, declared that it had
thwarted an Israeli military operation aimed at releasing an Israeli
prisoner held by the Resistance in Gaza.</span></p>
<p><span>Al-Qassam’s claim was fortified by details about the failed
mission, along with the name of the Israeli soldier who was being
‘rescued’. </span></p>
<p><span>“A special Zionist force was discovered during its attempt to
advance to free one of the enemy’s prisoners, resulting in a clash that
led to the death and injury of members of the (Israeli) force. The
military aviation (air force) intervened and bombed the area with a
series of raids to cover their retreat,” Al-Qassam’s statement read. </span></p>
<h4><b>Saar Baruch</b></h4>
<p><span>The clashes, according to Al-Qassam, resulted in the killing of
an Israeli soldier, named Saar Baruch, a 25-year-old trooper with an ID
card numbered 207775032.</span></p>
<p><span>Al-Qassam also claimed to have seized a rifle from one of the attacking soldiers along with other communication devices.</span></p>
<p><span>Aside from the early morning statement, very little was added to the story – no video footage, pictures or any other details. </span></p>
<p><span>Hours later, the Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari said
that two Israeli soldiers were seriously wounded during a rescue
mission. Although he did not mention that the rescue mission was a
failure, it was clear that it was not a success.</span></p>
<p><span>The initial Hamas statements said that several attackers were
killed and wounded, but did not verify the fate of the body of Baruch
himself. </span></p>
<h4><b>Disaster </b></h4>
<p><span>For over two months, Netanyahu’s War Council has insisted that Israel will release all hostages and prisoners by force. </span></p>
<p><span>On the other hand, the Palestinian Resistance insisted that not
a single captive will be released through combat but only through
mediated agreements that would also ensure the release of all
Palestinian prisoners and other civilians held in Israel. </span></p>
<p><span>Starting on November 24, Israeli civilian captives were
released in small groups, in exchange for allowing humanitarian aid to
reach Gaza, along with the release of many Palestinian women and
children detained in Israeli prisons. </span></p>
<p><span>That was part of a ceasefire that only lasted for seven days,
but abruptly ended when Israel decided to return to the battlefield. </span></p>
<p><span>But the Israeli return to war was far from being a success.
Palestinian Resistance groups, throughout the Gaza Strip, provided
documented evidence of scores of Israeli tanks and other military
vehicles being blown up by young Gazans armed with mostly home-made
weapons. </span></p>
<p><span>Not even Israel’s daring attempt to invade the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis made much difference. </span></p>
<p><span>For whatever reason, Israel has decided that it was Khan Yunis,
after all, not the Al-Shifa Hospital that Hamas was using as its
headquarters. </span></p>
<p><span>Little did Israel know that Hamas would be utilizing its Nukhba forces, Al-Qassam strongest commandos units to defend the city. </span></p>
<p><span>The battle of Khan Yunis forced Israel to revisit earlier
claims that it will be able to fight in Gaza for months, if not years.
The latest claim, as of Friday, December 8, is that Israel would require
three to four weeks to subdue the city. </span></p>
<h4><b>Embarrassing Episode</b></h4>
<p><span>That subduing is unlikely to take place, and today’s botched
rescue mission is proof that the Israeli war on Gaza no longer carries
any serious value, neither tactical nor strategic.</span></p>
<p><span>Soon after Hagari declared that two Israeli soldiers were
seriously wounded, Al-Qassam immediately released a video, showing a
very bloody scene.</span></p>
<p><span>The video starts with Baruch identifying himself, asking to go
home, yet ended with his blood-drenched body on the ground, with at
least one bullet hole in his chest. </span></p>
<p><span>This is how Al-Qassam’s Military Media described the events that led to Baruch’s killing at the hands of his Israeli rescuers: </span></p>
<blockquote><p><span>“At precisely 2:30 am, a Zionist force infiltrated
the location where the captive was held using an ambulance, and
disguising behind humanitarian organizations, in a blatant violation of
international law. The force was discovered and engaged with gunfire.”</span></p></blockquote>
<p><span>The reference to an ‘ambulance’ and a ‘humanitarian
organization’ was explained by a military analyst to Al-Jazeera as an
Israeli attempt to disguise its soldiers as humanitarian workers with an
international medical organization. </span></p>
<p><span>The repercussions of this will prove more than embarrassing for
Benjamin Netanyahu’s government who had repeatedly vowed to the Israeli
families of captives that he had a plan that would ensure the
destruction of Hamas and the freeing of the captives, at the same time. </span></p>
<p><span>But the failed operation, which instead of rescuing Baruch
killed him, along with others, will complicate the political scene for
Netanyahu, who is yet to deliver a single real achievement in Gaza since
October 7.</span></p>
<p><i><span>(The Palestine Chronicle)</span></i></p>
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