On Saturday morning, Israeli forces rescued four hostages from Gaza who had been held by Hamas since October 7. The rescued hostages were Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andrei Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40.

Soon after, the Associated Press ran the headline: “BREAKING: Gaza’s Health Ministry says 274 Palestinians were killed during the Israeli operation.”

BREAKING: The Gazan Health Ministry’s figures cannot be trusted.

According to the New York Times: “Residents in the town of Nuseirat, where the hostages were being held, reported intense bombardments during the rescue operation.”

Videos showed people running for cover as bombs rained down. After the airstrikes, the streets were so clogged with rubble that ambulances and emergency services in central Gaza were unable to respond to many of the calls to transport the wounded to hospitals, the Gazan Health Ministry said. [Emphasis added.]

In the same report, the Times says the civilian death toll remains “unclear.”

One death is certain, however. Arnon Zamora, 36, leader of the IDF specialized counter-terrorism unit, was killed during the rescue mission. Zamora was also a husband and father.

One of the rescued hostages, Argamani said: “We cannot forget — there are still 120 hostages who must be released. We must make every effort, in every way possible, to bring them here to Israel, to their families.”

In every way possible — even if it is dangerous, putting Israeli soldiers and local non-combatants at risk. Israel’s first obligation is to its own citizens.