More on the hostage rescue, death toll over 100 already
Israeli military says it conducted ground and air operation in Rafah to extract hostages
Palestinians inspect the damage to residential buildings where two Israeli hostages were reportedly held before being rescued during an operation by Israeli security forces in Rafah, Gaza, on February 12
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) coordinated a ground and air operation on Hamas targets in Rafah to extract two hostages, a spokesperson told reporters Monday. "In a retrieval joint operation of IDF, security forces and special police forces, the special police unit, we retrieved Louis Har and Fernando Marman who were kidnapped by Hamas on October 7 from Nir Ytzhak," said spokesman Daniel Hagari. "There was aerial coverage and a wave of strikes by the Israeli Air Force together with the Southern Command.”
Hagari said that special forces entered a building in the center of Rafah at 1:49 a.m. local time (6:49 p.m. ET). "At 1:50am, the air cover started the action by the Air Force and the southern command in order to allow the forces to detach and to hit Hamas terrorists in the area," he added. Within minutes, the two hostages were escorted out under fire from Hamas fighters and then taken to a "safe spot" in Rafah to get medical attention, Hagari added. They were then airlifted out of Gaza by helicopter to the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Israel.
Hagari said the "complex" operation had been planned for a "long time." "It was a very tense and exciting night," he added. "They were intentionally held in the middle of a civilian neighborhood, inside a civilian building, to try and prevent us from rescuing them. But we did," Hagari said in a later statement released in English. "This rescue mission underscores the importance of our ground operation in Gaza, including Rafah, when conditions allow."
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said Monday that more than 100 people had been killed by Israeli air strikes on Rafah overnight. More people are believed to remain trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings.
"Welcome back home," Netanyahu tells hostages rescued from Gaza
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed home the two Israeli-Argentine hostages rescued overnight in joint operations with the Israel Defense Forces in Rafah. "Fernando and Louis - Welcome back home," Netanyahu said in a statement on Monday.
Sixty-year-old Fernando Simon Marman and 70-year-old Louis Har were both taken during the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, the IDF said. "I salute our brave warriors for the bold action that led to their release. Only the continuation of military pressure, until complete victory, will result in the release of all our hostages," Netanyahu said. "We will not miss any opportunity to bring them home."
Argentina's president thanks Israel for rescue of its nationals held hostage
The office of Argentina's President Javier Milei praised Israel for the rescue of its two citizens from Gaza on Monday. Milei's office said on X that it thanks the Israel Defense Forces, the Israel Security Agency and the Israel Police for "having successfully completed the rescue" of Fernando Simon Marman, 60, and Louis Har, 70.
Marman and Har are dual Israeli-Argentine nationals, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum told CNN. They were both captured during the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, according to the IDF. Milei said he had repeated a request to free the Argentine hostages to Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a recent state visit to Israel.
Argentina pledges to move their embassy to Jerusalem just 6 days ago, and the IDF rescues two Argentinian citizens. Call me cynical, yet together with the superbowl ad, it all smells like a huge PR stunt to legitimize further action in Rafah.
Hamas condemns Israel's "horrific massacre" of civilians in Rafah
Wounded Palestinians are brought to Kuwait Hospital for treatment following Israeli attacks on Rafah City, Gaza on February 12.
Hamas condemned what it called a "horrific massacre" by Israel against civilians in Rafah on Monday after the Israeli military confirmed it conducted airstrikes near the city. More than 100 people were killed in overnight strikes by Israeli forces in the southern city, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS). Hamas also said over 100 people were killed in the attacks.
Hamas said the Israeli military's attack on Rafah "and its horrific massacres against defenseless civilians and displaced children, women, and the elderly... is considered a continuation of the genocidal war and the forced displacement attempts it is waging against our Palestinian people." CNN cannot independently verify the number of casualties on the ground.
In its statement, Hamas accused US President Joe Biden and his administration of bearing "full responsibility" for the civilian deaths. Israel's strikes on Rafah come a day after Biden had a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and reaffirmed his stance that the Israeli military should not proceed with a ground offensive in Rafah “without a credible and executable plan” to ensure the safety of civilians — estimated to be over one million people who had fled there amid Israeli bombardment.
Biden and Netanyahu had discussed a deal to secure the release of hostages in Gaza at length during the call, according to a senior administration official, but gaps remain in those discussions.
