Hamas said on Saturday it still held the largest number of hostages and could increase it, after Israeli forces rescued four hostages held by the Palestinian group in a raid in the central Gaza Strip.
The statement by Hamas comes after Israel on Saturday carried out its largest hostage rescue operation since the war with began, taking four to safety out of central Gaza as heavy fighting continued there.
The army said it rescued Noa Argamani, 25; Almog Meir Jan, 21; Andrey Kozlov, 27; and Shlomi Ziv, 40, in a complex daytime operation in the heart of Nuseirat, raiding two locations at once and under fire. All were well, the military said.
They were taken by helicopter for medical checks and reunions with loved ones after 246 days in captivity.
Netanyahu in a statement said “Israel does not surrender to terrorism and acts with creativity and boldness that knows no bounds to bring home our abductees.” He vowed to continue the fighting until all are freed.
The operation was “daring in nature, planned brilliantly, and executed in an extraordinary fashion," Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said.
The Hamas-run government media office in Gaza said the death toll in Nuseirat had risen to at least 210 Palestinians with many more wounded, after medics and health officials gave earlier tolls of up to 100 dead.
Saturday’s hostage recovery operation brings the total of rescued captives to seven. Two men were rescued in February and a woman was rescued in the aftermath of the October attack. Israeli troops have recovered at least 16 bodies of hostages, according to the government.
