"This was an extremely significant event in this war," Col. Kemp told us. "The IDF has been fighting very hard, very effectively, and with immense success in Gaza. They have destroyed most of the Hamas terror army and are on the path of its final destruction as a fighting force that can threaten Israel. But all Israelis’ hearts are firmly with the hostages and this dramatic rescue operation of four of them is a much-needed shot in the arm for people who have endured so much for so long in what is becoming Israel’s longest-ever war."
He noted that such successful hostage rescues are rare during warfare. "Successful hostage rescue in a hostile environment is probably the most difficult of military operations. I have been involved in the rescue of British hostages in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is rare for them to succeed. There are two prerequisites that are both extremely hard to achieve. First, you must have pinpoint intelligence to tell you exactly where the hostages are being held and in what conditions, including who and how many are guarding them. Second, you must be able to achieve surprise, in other words, to launch the operation without prior detection. Bearing in mind it is likely that hostages will have a gun to their heads and any warning that a rescue is coming will likely see them killed immediately. Terrorists will also often be expecting a rescue and will prepare to kill the rescuers eg by booby traps, snipers, etc." READ MORE