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Israelis have been celebrating after four hostages captured by Hamas were freed in a raid on a Gaza refugee camp. Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41 were rescued by Israeli special forces on Saturday, the largest such operation since the start of the war. The four had been kidnapped from the Nova music festival in southern Israel during Hamas’ 7 October attacks, which saw militants kill 1,200 people and take around 250 hostages to Gaza.

Israeli military chiefs compared the “daring” rescue mission in Nuseirat to a “surgical brain operation”. But the daylight raid, which was backed by air strikes, is also said have killed and injured hundreds of Palestinians, with many victims still thought to be buried under rubble. How were the hostages located and rescued? In November, 105 hostages were released in exchange for about 240 Palestinians held in Israeli jails.



But there are understood to be 116 hostages left Gaza, according to Israeli figures, including at least 40 who are feared dead. According to Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, military intelligence had determined for some time that the four hostages were being held in two apartments about 200 meters apart in the centre of the Nuseirat camp. The hostages were captive in locked rooms heavily guarded by armed militants, within clocks of flats housing families.

Rear Adm Hagari said that, ahead of Saturday’s raid, forces had trained repeatedly on a model of the apartment buildings. .

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