2024-02-12 14:06:53
Both Argentine hostages released by Israel in the early hours of this Monday in Gaza are fine and were reunited with their families. Both had been kidnapped by Hamas from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak on October 7 and were rescued in a joint operation by the Israeli Army, the Shin Bet secret service and the Israel Police.
“It has been a very complex operation. We have been working on this operation for a long time. We were waiting for the right conditions,” explained Lieutenant Colonel Richard Hecht, an Israeli military spokesman.
The hostages were held on the second floor of a building that was opened with an explosive charge during the assault, in which intense exchanges of fire took place with neighboring buildings, Hecht said.
“I am very happy to announce that tonight two freed hostages have landed here, at the Sheba Medical Center, the largest hospital in Israel,” said Professor Arnon Afek, director of that institution. It was there that the two Argentines were reunited with their families and these are the emotional images of that moment: