A special forces unit of Israel that works with canines rescued a family after searching for them inside a building following the terror attack by the Hamas group.
The family had been locked inside their home for hours, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
The Hamas group had invaded residential areas on Saturday in the massive terror attack, killing hundreds of Israelis, including children. Visuals on social media show parents being held hostage with children and family members being picked out to be killed.
In the latest IDF video, soldiers of the Oketz ("Sting" in Hebrew) unit are seen entering a house. They identify themselves as Israelis to the terrified family hiding inside their house.
"How are you?" a solider says in Hebrew to a woman who is hiding behind a door. "It's the IDF, it's the IDF. Everything is okay; happy holiday, happy holiday. Are you with someone here?" the soldier says.
"With my son," the woman replies. Later, the soldiers are seen walking out with the woman and her son.
"After hours locked in the shelter throughout the Hamas massacre, our special unit "Oketz" delivered the news to this mother and son that they're safe," the IDF said in the post on X.
The Oketz special forces canine unit operates with specially trained dogs for missions in counter-terrorism, search and rescue, and other specific purposes.
The unit operates in all regions of Israel. Soldiers undergo a difficult selection and testing programme before joining the unit. Each dog is trained to have a specific speciality - attack, search and rescue, locating weapons, detecting explosives, etc.
