Israeli forces rescue four hostages in a raid in Gaza that authorities say killed dozens of Palestinians

Four Israeli hostages were freed today by Israeli forces from central Gaza. All hostages were captured by Hamas on October 7 during the Nova music festival.

Noa Argamani, 26, a native of Be’er Sheva, became the face of the hostages after a 10-second video of her capture showed her being carried away screaming on the back of a motorcycle. Argamani was kidnapped along with her boyfriend, Avinatan Or, who is believed to still be in Gaza. Argamani is “a yoga and art lover who enjoys hiking” and studied information systems management at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.

Almog Meir Jan, of Or Yehuda, was scheduled to start a new job at a technology company the day after his capture, according to the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. Jan “is a beloved son who connects with everyone through his big, warm smile,” the organization said in a statement. The IDF said Jan is 21 years old, while the forum said he turned 22 in May.

Shlomi Ziv was working as a security guard at the Nova Festival when he was taken hostage by Hamas. Ziv, who hails from Moshav Elkosh, is described as a family-oriented man who is “always the first to help and intervene,” according to the forum. The IDF stated that Ziv is 40 years old, while the Hostages and Missing Families Forum put him at 41.

Andrey Kozlov, 27, was also working as a security guard at the music festival on October 7 when Hamas arrested him. Kozlov had moved to Israel from Russia just over a year ago, according to the family forum. The Israeli consulate in St. Petersburg, Russia, is in contact with Kozlov’s parents, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said today.

The father of Noa Argamani, who became the face of the hostages kidnapped on October 7 after a harrowing video of their abduction went around the world, expressed his deep gratitude to everyone involved in rescuing his daughter.

“After being separated from Noa for eight months, Noa has returned,” Yaakov Argamani said in a statement from the Hostages Families Forum headquarters.

“I want to thank each and every one of you, the president, the prime minister, everyone,” he said in the statement, released after the two were reunited at a local hospital. “Let’s not forget that there are still 120 hostages; we must release them.”

“We must do everything possible to bring them here to Israel to their families,” said Argamani. “Thank you again, a thousand thanks to everyone who has been involved in this matter.”

He also said Noa was doing well and “looks wonderful, looks excellent.” He said Saturday, the day she was rescued, was also his birthday.

“Look what a present I got for my birthday,” he said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said today that the rescue of four hostages during an operation in the Gaza Strip was “an important sign of hope – especially for the many families in Israel who still fear for their relatives.”

“Four hostages are now free. Hamas must finally release all hostages. The war must end,” Scholz said in a post on X.

In a statement, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan praised Israeli security services for rescuing four Israeli hostages from Gaza and said the U.S. “supports all efforts to release” the remaining hostages.

“This can be done through ongoing negotiations or other means,” Sullivan said in the statement. “The hostage release and ceasefire agreement now on the table would ensure the release of all remaining hostages, along with security guarantees for Israel and assistance for the innocent civilians in Gaza.”

Sullivan said the agreement is supported by the United States as well as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.

“They all have to be released – now,” Sullivan said of the hostages.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which campaigns for the release of the hostages, has released a statement honoring the name of Chief Inspector Arnon Zamora, who was killed today during the hostage rescue operation in central Gaza.

“The Family Forum bows its head in deep sorrow over the death of Commander Arnon Zamora, of blessed memory, who fell during the heroic rescue operation of Noa Argamani, Shlomi Ziv, Andrey Kozlov and Almog Meir Jan,” the statement said.

“The dedication and courage of our security forces are the values ​​on which the State of Israel was built; with their deaths they commanded us to live.”

An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said today that the Israeli consulate in St. Petersburg, Russia, was in contact with the parents of Andrey Kozlov, one of the hostages rescued in Gaza.

Consul General Ran Gidor and Deputy Consul General Tal Shvartsman assisted Kozlov’s parents, who were scheduled to land in Israel tomorrow morning to meet their son.

President Joe Biden today welcomed the rescue of four Gaza hostages in a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

In his first speech, Macron welcomed the “liberation” of the four hostages by the Israeli army.

Biden echoed Macron’s sentiments, adding that his government was committed to releasing all hostages and ending the war in Gaza.

“We will not stop working until all hostages come home and a ceasefire is reached,” Biden said. “That absolutely has to happen.”

According to the Gaza Strip’s state media office, at least 200 Palestinians were killed in air strikes in the Nuseirat camp in one of the bloodiest single incidents of the war.

According to GMO, the more than 400 injured arrived at two hospitals, Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat and Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir Al-Balah.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Hospital, one of the few remaining functioning hospitals in the Gaza Strip, is currently running on only a single generator and could fail as dozens of injured people still lie on the street, a Health Ministry spokesman said outside the hospital.

“We don’t know how many of the people killed were militants and how many were civilians,” said Raf Sanchez of NBC News.

According to Israeli police, an officer of the Israeli special forces was killed today during the hostage rescue operation in central Gaza.

The officer was identified as “Senior Inspector Arnon Zamora, commander and tactical agent of Yamam,” Israel’s national military counterterrorism division.

Zamora was hospitalized in critical condition before he died.

“The Israel Police will support the grieving family and accompany them through this difficult time,” the police said in a statement.

Israel’s Defense Minister praised the military operation that led to the rescue of four hostages in Gaza on Saturday.

“This is one of the most heroic and extraordinary operations I have witnessed in my 47 years in the Israeli defense apparatus,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Saturday.

Gallant said Israeli troops had “shown so much courage – under heavy fire” – in their daytime raid on Gaza.

“I can’t remember ever having conducted operations of this kind – with this intensity and with this level of cooperation and success,” he said.