The USA sent dozens of special operations commandos to support Israel, which started a land operation to rescue hostages held by Hamas. The New York Times, commandos; He wrote that the FBI, the State Department and the US, together with other prisoner rescue experts, are intensifying their work in the region.
HAMAS HOLDS MORE THAN 200 HOSTAGES
Christopher Maier, the Pentagon’s top official in charge of special operations, said in a statement that American commandos in Israel helped locate more than 200 hostages captured during Hamas’ surprise cross-border attacks on October 7.
“We are actively assisting the Israelis on a number of issues,” Maier told a special operations conference in Washington. He said one of his main missions was to assist Israel in identifying hostages, including American hostages, adding: “It’s really our responsibility to do that.”
DOZENS OF COMMANDO ARE IN THE WAR ZONE
Maier declined to say how many US Special Operations forces are currently in Israel. But other U.S. officials say the Defense Department has sent several dozen commandos in recent weeks in addition to a small team that conducted a pre-planned training in Israel on Oct. 7.
The commandos will join the FBI, State Department and other U.S. government hostage rescue experts in talks with their Israeli counterparts, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters.
OTHER COUNTRIES ARE ALSO SENDING THEIR SPECIAL TROOPS
Some Western countries have secretly moved small teams of their own special forces closer to Israel to assist in a possible rescue operation and large-scale evacuation of their citizens from Israel or Lebanon.
Maier continued his statements as follows: “US Special Operations forces in the region are ready to help our own citizens get out of their locations and keep our embassies safe.”
