The Israeli army released two Israeli hostages kidnapped last October 7 by Hamas in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, during the night . 100 people died in the operation, Hamas reports .
«During a joint operation by the IDF (the Israeli Defense Forces, ed.), the ISA (the Israeli Shin Bet security service, ed.) and the Israeli police in Rafah, two Israeli hostages were rescued during the night , Fernando Simon Marman (60) and Louis Har (70) , kidnapped by the terrorist organization Hamas on 7 October from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak", reads an IDF statement. Both freed hostages "are in good medical condition and have been transferred to the Sheba Tel Hashomer hospital for checks."
The operation, the Hamas Ministry of Health announced shortly, "resulted in around 100 deaths". During the night, Hamas had in fact spoken of a series of bombings in Rafah which had hit 14 houses and three mosques .
The Israeli raid began around 2am, when Tel Aviv forces "broke into a building in the heart of Rafah where the two were being held by Hamas. From the moment they opened fire, the soldiers protected the hostages with their bodies during the battle with the terrorists."
The hostages were held by armed terrorists "who were present in the building and also in adjacent buildings". The liberation, explained military spokesman Daniel Hagari "was accompanied by air strikes to allow the disengagement of the soldiers and strike the Hamas terrorists in the area" .
Two Israeli soldiers died in the raid. The freed hostages are both Argentinians, for this reason President Milei thanked them.
(Unioneonline/L)