Israeli Forces Rescue Two Hostages From Hamas Captivity in Gaza

[Nanjeanne]

Israeli security forces have rescued two hostages who were held captive by Hamas in Gaza overnight Sunday, a joint statement by the IDF, Shin Bet and Israel Police said.

The two, Louis Norberto Har, 70, and Fernando Marman, 60, were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak on October 7 and were held in an apartment in Rafah. They are in good condition and have been taken for medical evaluation at Sheba Medical Center in central Israel.

Free Haaretz link [link:https://archive.is/4yg86|]

Good news for these men and their families. I saw a clip this morning on Democracy Now of a relative of one of the men begging Israel to make a deal for the hostages, saying the families need to breathe. To make the deal now.

[Eugene]

1. Israeli forces rescue 2 hostages in dramatic Gaza raid that killed at least 67 Palestinians

Israeli forces rescue 2 hostages in dramatic Gaza raid that killed at least 67 Palestinians (Associated Press)

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli forces rescued two hostages early Monday, storming a heavily guarded apartment in the Gaza Strip and extracting the captives under fire in a dramatic raid that was a small but symbolically significant success for Israel. Heavy airstrikes that provided cover for the operation killed at least 67 Palestinians, according to health officials in the beleaguered territory.

The plight of the hostages has profoundly shaken Israelis, and the rescue in densely populated Rafah briefly lifted the spirits of a nation still reeling from Hamas’ cross-border raid last year that started the war. Israel has described Rafah — a city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled fighting elsewhere — as the last remaining Hamas stronghold in the territory and signaled that its ground offensive may soon target the city.

In Gaza, the operation unleashed another tragedy in a war that has killed 28,340 Palestinians in the territory, displaced over 80% of the population and set off a massive humanitarian crisis.

https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-02-12-2024-4ade5edf47711c6b0c13d1380980de2b