Israel-Hamas War: What happened on day 129?

An Israeli government spokesperson said on Monday that Hamas had been reduced to half its fighting force in the Gaza war, with more than 12,000 gunmen who have been killed and large numbers wounded or captured.

"We're talking about three-quarters of Hamas' battalions that have been shattered ... with over 12,000 terrorists who have been killed," Eylon Levy said in a briefing.

"When you take into account the number of terrorists who have been wounded or apprehended, that is more than half of Hamas' fighting force knocked out of action."

A Dutch appeals court, on Monday, ordered the Dutch government to block all exports of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel within seven days.

"It is undeniable that there is a clear risk the exported F-35 parts are used in serious violations of international humanitarian law," the court said.

Explosions were heard at Aleppo airport in an attack attributed to Israel, according to initial reports.

Hamas is in complete shock following the dramatic rescue operation in Rafah, in which hostages Fernando Marman and Luis Har were freed from captivity. In the statement published by Hamas on Monday, there is no mention of the rescue of the kidnapped individuals, only the losses on the Palestinian side.

"The Nazi occupation army's attack on the city of Rafah last night, and its horrific massacres against defenseless civilians and helpless children, women, and elderly who have so far lost their lives over a hundred times, is considered a continuation of the people's genocide and forced displacement attempts... being carried out against our Palestinian people," Hamas wrote in a statement. 

"There is no replacement for UNRWA in the Palestinian Territories," the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell stated on Monday.

"We have to wait for the results of the investigation," he added, referring to an internal investigation of the United Nations into its own body. 

In an interview with The New York Times on Friday, Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA’s commissioner general, said, “Our employees are part of the social fabric in Gaza and its ecosystem. And as part of the social fabric in Gaza, you also have Hamas,” alluding to the organizations' connections to terror group Hamas. 

This interview occurred against the backdrop of the exposure of UNRWA’s Hamas ties after the October 7 massacre and the Hamas tunnels revealed underneath the UNRWA headquarters in Gaza. 

As the world woke up Monday morning to the news of the dramatic rescue by Israeli special forces of two of the hostages held by Hamas, the Office of the Argentinian President thanked the IDF and the Special Forces who conducted the operation.

"The Office of the President thanks the Israeli Defense Forces, the Shabak [Israel Security Agency] and the Israeli Police for having successfully completed the rescue of the Argentines Fernando Simon Marman (60) and Louis Har (70), who had been kidnapped since last October 7 by the terrorist group Hamas," the office's official X account stated in a post.

Two soldiers from the Maglan unit of the Commando Brigade were killed in battle in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday night, the IDF announced early Monday morning.

Sgt. -Maj. Adi Eldor, 21, from Haifa, and Sgt. -Maj. Alon Kleinman, 21, from Tel Aviv both fell in battle.

The two deaths bring the total number of IDF servicemen and women to lose their lives since the start of the Israel-Hamas War to 566, according to the IDF.

The rescue on Sunday night of Fernando Marman and Louis Norbeto Har from Hamas captivity in Gaza closes the circle for Gabriela Leimberg, her daughter Mia, and Clara Marman, who were released from captivity in the previous prisoner exchange.

On the day of the Hamas attack on October 7, Clara Marman, 63, was kidnapped from her home in Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak, which is located near Gaza. Along with her, Gabriela Leimberg, brother Fernando, and daughter Mia were also kidnapped.

"Last night, we brought Louis and Fernando home. In a joint rescue operation by the IDF, the Israel Security Agency, and the Yamam – the special forces unit of the Israel Police, we rescued Louis Har and Fernando Marman, who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th from Nir Yitzhak," IDF Spokesperson Rr.-Adm. Daniel Hagari said of the dramatic rescue of two Israeli hostages on Monday morning.

"This was a complex rescue operation under fire in the heart of Rafah, based on highly sensitive and valuable intelligence from the Intelligence Directorate and the Israel Security Agency," said Hagari.