The Israeli military said Monday it has rescued two hostages during a special operation conducted overnight in Rafah, in southern Gaza.
The hostages are 60-year-old Fernando Simon Marman and 70-year-old Louis Har, who were both taken 128 days ago during Hamas’ October 7th attack on Israel.
The two are in good medical condition and have been transferred for Sheba Medical Center at Tel HaShomer, said the Israel Defense Forces. The joint operation was done with the Israeli Security Agency and Israel Police, it said.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant hailed the “impressive release operation” in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying he had followed the operation in the Command Center along with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and senior commanders.
Both hostages had been kidnapped from the Nir Yitzhak kibbutz, he added. Nir Yitzhak was one of multiple kibbutzim close to the border with Gaza that came under attack by Hamas militants during their October 7 rampage which saw some 1,200 people killed and more than 240 taken hostage.
Israel’s response has wrought widespread devastation across Gaza. The Hamas-controlled Health Ministry in Gaza said the cumulative toll since October 7 has risen to more than 27,500 killed.
The news of the hostage release comes as Rafah was being pounded by Israeli attacks. The Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said Monday that more than 60 people had been killed by recent airstrikes and that the city was experiencing “intense targeting.”
CNN cannot independently verify the numbers.
At least two mosques and around a dozen homes were targeted in the strikes, the Rafah municipality said on Monday.
The Israel Defense Forces confirmed Monday that they conducted “a series of strikes” on targets in the area of Shaboura, a district of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.
“The strikes have concluded,” the IDF said in a statement.
Rafah has become a last refuge for Palestinians fleeing south to avoid Israel’s air and ground campaigns across the rest of the crowded enclave. More than 1.3 million people are believed to be in Rafah, the majority displaced from other parts of Gaza, according to the United Nations.
And they have no remaining escape route; the city borders Egypt, and the sole crossing into that country has been closed for months along with the rest of Gaza’s borders.
International alarm is rising ahead of an anticipated ground assault on Rafah, with Netanyahu brushing off mounting criticism of the plans – saying calls not to enter Rafah are like telling Israel to lose the war. He pledged to provide safe passage for civilians, but offered few details.
