Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov and Schlomi Ziv: The Israeli army has freed four hostages from Hamas who were kidnapped during the attack on October 7. Chancellor Scholz also expressed his relief.
Eight months after the major attack on Israel, four hostages have been rescued alive from Hamas. They were brought to safety on Saturday morning in a “complex” rescue operation in Nuseirat in the center of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli military announced. The hostage families’ forum called the rescue a “miraculous triumph,” and Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) spoke of a “sign of hope.”
According to the army, the freed hostages are 26-year-old Noa Argamani, 22-year-old Almog Meir Jan, 27-year-old Andrey Kozlov and 41-year-old Schlomi Ziv. The four Israelis were kidnapped in a major attack by the radical Islamist Hamas on October 7 while they were attending a music festival in southern Israel.
Israel: Hamas hostages in good health
The army said the four liberated Israelis were in good health. They were taken to a hospital near Tel Aviv for examination. Images published online showed Argamani being received by her father. Israeli television showed the 26-year-old speaking on the phone with President Isaac Herzog.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the rescue operation showed “that Israel is not surrendering to terrorism” and would continue to act with “creativity and courage” to bring the hostages home.
According to the army, the hostages were freed at two different locations in a residential area in Nuseirat. Army spokesman Daniel Hagari said one soldier was seriously injured during the fighting with “armed terrorists.” “The message to Hamas this morning is clear: we are determined to bring all hostages home.”
Olaf Scholz: “Important sign of hope”
“Noa, Almog, Andrey and Schlomi: We are very happy to welcome you home,” said Israeli Defense Minister Joav Gallant on the online service X. He described the army’s rescue operation as “heroic.” The hostage families’ forum also reacted with relief and called on the Israeli government to work for the release of the remaining hostages.
Scholz called the release of the four Israelis “an important sign of hope” for the relatives of the hostages still being held in the Gaza Strip. “Hamas must finally release all the hostages,” the Chancellor wrote on X. “The war must end.”
The Israeli army has been fighting against Hamas in the Gaza Strip since October 7. The war was triggered by the latter’s major attack on Israel, in which Islamist fighters killed 1,194 people and took 251 hostages to the Gaza Strip, according to Israeli sources. According to the Israeli army, 116 hostages are still being held by Hamas. 41 of them are said to already be dead.
In response to the major Hamas attack, Israel has since launched a massive military operation in the Gaza Strip. According to figures from the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, which cannot be independently verified, more than 36,800 people have been killed so far.
Israeli army has recently increasingly targeted the city of Nuseirat
The army had recently increased its attacks on the central Gaza Strip and in particular on Nuseirat. On Saturday morning, the Israeli army announced that it was targeting “terrorist infrastructure in the Nuseirat area.”
A spokesman for Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al Balah said at least 15 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on targets in central Gaza, including the Nuseirat refugee camp, on Saturday.
In the northern city of Gaza, five people were also killed on Saturday night when an Israeli fighter jet bombed a residential building, according to local rescue workers.
On Thursday, Israel attacked a school run by the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Nuseirat in the Gaza Strip, killing “17 terrorists” in the process. According to a local hospital, at least 37 people were killed in the attack. According to Israeli sources, around 30 members of Hamas and the Islamist militia Islamic Jihad used three classrooms in the school to “direct their terror campaign” from there.
Hamas’ foreign affairs chief, Ismail Haniya, has described Israel’s recent operations in Gaza as a “massacre” of the Palestinians. “The enemy continues its massacre against our people, our children and women, in Nuseirat and Deir al-Balah,” Haniya said on Saturday. In both places, Israeli security forces freed four hostages held by Hamas. At least 50 people were killed, according to medical sources.
Haniya said Israel had “failed militarily, politically and morally.” Referring to the still unsuccessful negotiations on a possible ceasefire, Haniya said Hamas would not agree to any agreement that did not “first and foremost provide security for our people.”
It remained unclear whether Haniya was referring directly to the news of the release of the four hostages from Hamas violence. He did not mention it directly in his statement.
Since the war in the Gaza Strip began eight months ago, Israel has accused Hamas of using civilians as human shields and of using civilian facilities such as hospitals and schools for its infrastructure. Hamas denies this.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
