JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated this Saturday that “Israel will not surrender to him terrorism”, after the rescue of four hostages held in Gaza since the attack carried out by Hamas terrorists in southern Israel on October 7.
The army identified the four freed hostages: a woman – Noa Argamani, 26 – and three men: Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41.
An Israeli agent was killed in the rescue operation, police reported.
The security forces “demonstrated that Israel will not surrender to terrorism and that it acts with boundless creativity and bravery to bring the hostages home,” Netanyahu said.
“We will not surrender until we fulfill our mission and bring back all our hostages, the living and the dead,” added the head of government from the room supervising military operations.
Israel said more than 130 people remain captive, and a quarter are believed to have died.
On October 7, Israel launched an all-out war against the Islamist movement Hamas, in power in Gaza, in response to the commando attack that killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the south of the country.
The terrorists also kidnapped 251 people, 116 of whom are still held in Gaza, including 41 who were reported dead, according to the Israeli military.
The Israeli retaliatory offensive claimed the lives of at least 36,801 people in Gaza, mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health, figures that no independent organization has confirmed.
Major rescue operation
Israel said more than 130 people remain captive, and a quarter are believed to have died.
The rescue comes as international pressure mounts on Israel for a ceasefire; However, Hamas refuses to hand over the hostages. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will return to the Middle East next week to try to advance the apparently stalled ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas terrorists.
Saturday’s operation is the largest live hostage rescue since the war broke out, bringing the total number of hostages rescued to seven.
Two men were rescued in February when troops stormed a heavily guarded apartment in a densely populated city, and another hostage, a woman, was rescued after the October attack. Israeli troops have so far recovered at least 16 bodies of Gaza hostages.
One of those rescued on Saturday, Argamani, has been one of the most recognizable hostages since she was kidnapped at a music festival.
The video of her kidnapping was one of the first to come to light, images of her horrified face widely shared: Argamani detained between two men on a motorcycle, with one arm extended and the other held while she screams: “Don’t kill me! ”.
Her mother, Liora, suffers from stage four brain cancer and in April she posted a video in which she pleaded to see her daughter before she died.
Source: With information from AFP and AP
