Navy helicopter, fighter jet both go down in South China Sea: Navy
Efnan Ipsir/Anadolu via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — A Navy helicopter and a fighter jet, both conducting routine operations from the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier, went down in the South China Sea about 30 minutes apart Sunday, the U.S. Pacific Fleet said in a statement.
The U.S. Navy MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter went down at about 2:45 p.m. local time. All three crew members were safely recovered, the Navy said.
“Following the incident, separately, at 3:15 p.m., an F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter assigned to the ‘Fighting Redcocks’ of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 22 also went down in the waters of the South China Sea while conducting routine operations from Nimitz.”
Both crew members ejected and were also safely recovered, the Navy said.
“All personnel involved are safe and in stable condition. The cause of both incidents is currently under investigation,” the U.S. Pacific Fleet said in the statement.
Bipin Joshi and Tamir Nimrodi, the two hostages whose fate in Gaza remained unknown, were not included on the list published by Hamas of the 20 living hostages expected to be released during Monday’s exchange of hostages held by Hamas and prisoners held by Israel.
Neither Hamas nor Israel released statements saying the two were deceased.
In addition to some 1,200 Israelis killed on Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas kidnapped 251 men and women during the terror attack. The majority were later released in hostage exchanges in the two years since then.
Of the 48 hostages who were still in Gaza at the time of the new ceasefire deal, 26 were confirmed dead by Israeli officials. Twenty others were believed to be alive at the time, with two people’s fates unknown.
Bipin Joshi, a Nepalese agriculture student who was in Israel to study, was kidnapped from Kibbutz Alumim, according to The Times of Israel.
“We just want him back,” his sister said in August, according to the newspaper. “It’s too much for me and my family.”
Joshi was 22 years old when kidnapped, according to Nepal’s Kathmandu Post.
Joshi’s family released footage of Joshi on Wednesday they said was recovered by the Israel Defense Forces and shared with the family by Israeli intelligence officials. The footage was believed to have been filmed in November 2023.
It is unclear exactly when the IDF recovered the footage and shared it with the family. The family released a clip of the footage via the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters on Wednesday.
“For many months, this footage was under strict censorship. Only recently were we granted permission to release it,” the Joshi family said in a statement with the video. “It is not easy for us to share it publicly, but we are in critical and historic days that will determine the fate of the 48 hostages, whether the living will return to their families and the deceased to a proper burial, or whether we will remain in pain without closure.”
Tamir Nimrodi was 18 years old when he was kidnapped barefoot and without his glasses, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Nimrodi, who had been serving with the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories, was taken from a base near the Erez Crossing into the Gaza Strip, according to the Times of Israel
“He always said I was his best friend. … I pray for the chance to have moments with him again,” said his mom, Herut Nimrodi. “The emptiness in my heart is indescribable.”
(LONDON) — The second of two remains of hostages recently recovered in Gaza has been identified, the Israel Defense Forces said Saturday.
The recovered bodies of the two hostages killed in the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas were identified as Ilan Weiss, a member of his kibbutz emergency squad, and Idan Shtivi, who was helping to rescue and evacuate people from the Nova music festival when he was abducted in the Tel Gama area, the IDF said in a statement Saturday. Shtivi was 28 at the time of his death.
Weiss was identified on Friday when Israeli officials first announced the recovery of the two bodies.
The IDF said the bodies of both hostages were recovered following a “complex rescue operation.”
“Idan Shtivi was murdered and abducted from the Nova music festival on October 7th, 2023, while trying to save other party goers he only met moments beforehand,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, said in a social media post.
Weiss was killed on Oct. 7, 2023, while his wife and daughter were kidnapped on Oct. 7, but released during the first ceasefire in November 2023, according to Israeli officials.
“Ilan Weiss, a hero, was a member of the emergency squad at Kibbutz Be’eri,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an earlier statement.
“Together with all citizens of Israel, my wife and I convey our heartfelt condolences to the dear families and share in their deep sorrow. I thank our commanders and fighters for their successful action, determination and bravery. The campaign to return the hostages is ongoing. We will neither rest nor be silent until we bring all of our hostages back home, the living and the deceased,” Netanyahu said.
“The hostage families embrace the family of Ilan Weiss during this difficult time. Ilan’s return fulfills the State of Israel’s fundamental duty to its citizens,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said in a statement. “Our hearts are with the family today. Alongside the grief and pain, his return provides some comfort to the family after 692 days of waiting in the nightmare of uncertainty.”
In an earlier statement, Israeli President Isaac Herzog offered his “heartfelt condolences and support” to Weis’ family calling this a moment of “deep sorrow, but also of closure.”
“Ilan showed courage and noble spirit when he fought the terrorists on that dark day. In his death, he gave life. And ever since, his family has shown extraordinary strength in their struggle for his return,” Herzog said in a statement.
“We wish to express our deep gratitude to the IDF and security forces who have worked and continue to work with dedication and courage,” the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said. “Only by bringing home all hostages can we achieve healing and national recovery.”
(LONDON) — A high-rise building in Gaza City was leveled by an Israeli strike on Friday, videos verified by ABC News show. Mushtaha Tower was located in the west of the city, near several large tent encampments where Palestinian civilians are sheltering.
Video reviewed and verified by ABC News shows the moment the tower collapses, rippling the canvas of an encampment’s tents. The verified footage shows at least three Israeli projectiles hitting the tower — people can be seen running as smoke engulfs the tent encampment.
Israeli officials claimed the building belonged to Hamas, shortly after issuing evacuation orders.
“Now the bolt is being removed from the gates of hell in Gaza,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote in Hebrew in a Friday post on X. “When the door opens, it will not close and IDF activity will increase — until the Hamas murderers and rapists accept Israel’s conditions for ending the war, primarily the release of all hostages and disarmament — or they will be destroyed.”
Earlier Friday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement warning that “over the coming days,” it “will attack several buildings that have been converted into terrorist infrastructure in preparation for expanding the operation into Gaza City: cameras, surveillance rooms, sniper and anti-tank missile launching positions, and command and control centers.”
Mashtaha Tower management denied the Israeli accusations, issuing a statement after the high-rise was destroyed.
“We confirm that the tower, since its targeting last year, has been under strict supervision by the management, and only displaced civilians are allowed entry,” they wrote.
“We categorically confirm that the tower is free of any cameras or security equipment, and that all its floors are open and uncovered, containing no cameras, light or heavy weapons,” the building’s management added.
Ezzat al-Rishq, a member of Hamas’ Political Bureau, said in a statement that Israel’s “attempts to justify targeting residential towers and destroying the city of Gaza with false claims of their use by Hamas are nothing but flimsy excuses and blatant lies, aimed at covering up its heinous crimes against unarmed civilians and continuing the policy of extermination and total destruction of the Gaza Strip.”
Mashtaha Tower was believed to be empty due to the forced evacuation. However, one of the largest displacement camps is located near the site, where hundreds of families are currently living in tents.
At least 69 Palestinians were killed and 422 injured over the past 24 hours as a result of Israeli forces, Gaza’s Hamas-run Ministry of Health said on Friday. Among those were six people killed and 190 injured while trying to collect humanitarian aid, according to the health ministry.
Three people starved to death in the war-torn Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, the Hamas-run Ministry of Health also said Friday. At least 376 people have died of starvation, including 134 children, since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 surprise terrorist attack in Israel, according to the health ministry.
