A 25-year-old Ashkelon resident, who according to initial estimates suffers from mental issues, kidnapped his niece and locked himself in an apartment.

Israel's elite SWAT team performs rooftop rescue

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After two hours of negotiations failed to secure the little girl's release, Israel's Special Central Unit (Yamam) – an elite counter-terrorism unit – rappelled down the side of the building and performed a daring rescue.

The man kidnapped his 4-year-old niece in the early afternoon hours of Wednesday and then barricaded both of tem within a fourth-story apartment in a residential building in the southern city of Ashkelon.

The police received reports that a mentally unstable man had barricaded himself in an apartment with some relatives. Massive police forces arrived at the scene together with Special Central Unit officers, and attempted to negotiate with the man and resolve the event without incident.

After two hours of intense negotiations led nowhere, Lachish District Police Commander Eli Uzeri decided to send in the Special Central Unit, who then rappelled off the side of the building from the rooftop, fired stun grenades and successfully neutralized the man and released the hostage niece.

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