Israeli Military Rescues Kidnapped Duo from Hamas Joint Operation in Rafah
A joint operation by the Israeli military, the domestic Shin Bet security service, and the Special Police Unit in Rafah freed Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Hare, 70, the military said.
The two men were kidnapped by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak on October 7, the military said, among some 250 people whom Israel says were seized during the militant raid that triggered its war on Gaza.
“We’ve been working a long time on this operation,” Israeli military spokesman Lt Col. Richard Hecht said. “We were waiting for the right conditions.”
The hostages were being held on the second floor of a building that was breached with explosives during the raid, which saw heavy exchanges of gunfire with surrounding buildings, Hecht said. A photograph released to the media showed them in a hospital, sitting on a sofa alongside relatives.
The Argentinian government thanked Israel for the rescue of the two men, who it said were dual nationals of Argentina.
Israel’s military said its air strikes had coincided with the raid to allow its forces to be extracted.
Gaza Health Ministry
The Gaza health ministry said 67 people had been killed and the number could rise as rescue operations were under way. A photograph from the scene showed a vast area of rubble where buildings had been destroyed.
Palestinians in Rafah said two mosques and several houses were hit in more than an hour of strikes by Israeli warplanes, tanks, and ships, causing widespread panic among people who had been asleep.
“It was the worst night since we arrived in Rafah last month. Death was so near as shells and missiles landed 200 meters from our tent camp,” said Gaza businessman Emad, a father of six, told Reuters using a chat app.
Some feared Israel had begun a long-feared ground offensive in the city, where more than a million people displaced by Israel’s war on Hamas are sheltering with nowhere else to go.
“Everyone said it was a surprise ground attack. My family and I said our last prayers,” Emad said.
A relative of one of the hostages said he had seen both freedmen in hospital and found them “a bit frail, a bit thin, a bit pale” but overall in good condition.
A joint operation by the Israeli military, the domestic Shin Bet security service, and the Special Police Unit in Rafah freed Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Hare, 70, the military said.
Two Men were Kidnapped by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak
The two men were kidnapped by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak on October 7, the military said, among some 250 people whom Israel says were seized during the militant raid that triggered its war on Gaza.
“We’ve been working a long time on this operation,” Israeli military spokesman Lt Col. Richard Hecht said. “We were waiting for the right conditions.”
The hostages were being held on the second floor of a building that was breached with explosives during the raid, which saw heavy exchanges of gunfire with surrounding buildings, Hecht said. A photograph released to the media showed them in a hospital, sitting on a sofa alongside relatives.
The Argentinian government thanked Israel for the rescue of the two men, who it said were dual nationals of Argentina.
“It was the worst night since we arrived in Rafah last month. Death was so near as shells and missiles landed 200 meters from our tent camp,” said Gaza businessman Emad, a father of six, told Reuters using a chat app.
Some feared Israel had begun a long-feared ground offensive in the city, where more than a million people displaced by Israel’s war on Hamas are sheltering with nowhere else to go.
“Everyone said it was a surprise ground attack. My family and I said our last prayers,” Emad said.
A relative of one of the hostages said he had seen both freedmen in hospital and found them “a bit frail, a bit thin, a bit pale” but overall in good condition.
