Four Israelis who had been taken hostage by Hamas on October 7 during the Nova music festival attacks were rescued by security forces on Saturday morning.
The individuals rescued are Noa Argamani, 25, Almog Meir Jan, 21, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 40. They have been transported to Sheba Tel-HaShomer Medical Center near Tel Aviv and are reportedly in good condition.
After being reunited with her father and terminally ill mother, Argamani spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the phone. In video footage from the October attack, Argamani was seen reaching out for her boyfriend as she was taken away on a motorcycle by two Hamas terrorists.
Argamani appeared in a series of propaganda videos released by Hamas in January. The first video clip featured her beside two male hostages, Yossi Sharabi and Itai Svirsky, and ended with a caption stating, “Tomorrow, we will inform you of their fate.” A final video showed the bodies of Sharabi and Svirsky, whom Argamani said were killed in an air strike.
The rescue mission took place as Israel Defense Forces were involved in heavy gunfire with Hamas terrorists in Nuseirat and other central Gaza areas. The IDF strikes resulted in at least 150 fatalities.
This marks the third successful operation by the IDF. On February 23, Fernando Marman and Louis Har were rescued from southern Rafah, and IDF Corporal Ori Megidish was rescued last October from the northern Gaza Strip.
Out of the 250 hostages taken, 120 remain in captivity, with 30 presumed dead. According to Israeli officials, several hostages have been killed while being held, with their bodies returned to Israel. On Monday, the IDF confirmed the deaths of four additional hostages.
