Rescued from under the rubble 

Photo: Flash90

When the Iranian missile struck the building in Ramat Gan at 5:42 a.m. on Sunday, June 15, Shlomo Chai thought it was the end.

The 67-year-old was in his protected room, as required. But after the explosion, when he tried to leave, he discovered that a heavy concrete slab had fallen across the exit from the safe room, completely blocking it.

About nine miles away, in Bat Yam, Avi found himself in a similar situation — trapped in his shelter after a direct hit to the neighboring building caused a concrete slab to collapse on the door.

The two men didn’t know each other, but their fates were connected: They were part of the massive rescue operation Israel’s Home Front Command has carried out since the Iranian regime’s murderous retaliation for the Israeli attack on its nuclear weapons facilities.

The deadly barrage on the night of June 14–15 was part of Iran’s “Operation Truth Guarantee 3” — the mullahs’ third direct attack on Israel since the war began, in response to the Israeli operation against Iran’s nuclear advancements. In five barrages launched over 72 hours, Iran fired more than 350 ballistic missiles at Israel. Most were intercepted, but around 20 breached Israeli defense systems and struck civilian targets in central and northern Israel.

As of press time, the civilian death toll stands at 24, with around 200 injured, and dozens still trapped under rubble in five main impact zones — Ramat Gan, Bat Yam, Tel Aviv, Rechovot, and Rishon L’Tzion. The Sunday morning attack was the first time Iranian missiles caused such extensive destruction in central Israel and the first time the Home Front Command had to conduct a large-scale rescue operation in the heart of Gush Dan.