"Complex operation"

Hostage (52) freed from Gaza Strip by army

The freed hostage Kaid Farhan Alkadi

(Bild: AFP/APA/the Hostages Families Forum Headquarters)

The Israeli army says it has rescued a hostage from the southern Gaza Strip. The operation was "complex" and took place in a tunnel, it said on Tuesday. The condition of the man (52) is stable.

He was taken to a hospital for examinations, said government spokesman David Mencer. His family had been informed. The hostage is 52-year-old Kaid Farhan Alkadi, who was kidnapped by the Palestinian organization Hamas on 7 October and taken to the Gaza Strip.

Alkadi comes from Rahat, a Bedouin town in the Negev desert in southern Israel. During the attack by Hamas and other extremist groups, he was working as a security guard in the Magen kibbutz. The Bedouin is the father of eleven children and was held hostage for a total of 326 days.

Here you can see relatives rushing to the freed hostage.

Relatives: "Nothing less than a miracle"
 His relatives immediately rushed to the hospital to greet their relative. "We are very excited to see him and embrace him," said one relative. The relatives described the homecoming as "nothing less than a miracle". However, military operations alone could not free the remaining hostages; what was needed was an agreement on a ceasefire in the war. The international community should exert pressure in this regard.

Eight hostages freed alive
This is the eighth hostage to be freed alive by the military. Most recently, in June, the young woman Noa Argamani and three other hostages were rescued in a dramatic military operation. This led to fierce fighting with armed Palestinians. 274 people were killed at the time.

According to an Israeli count, Hamas is still holding 108 more hostages, some of whom have already been declared dead. A further 72 may still be alive. In total, more than 250 people were abducted from Israel during the attack, some of whom were released as a result of an agreement.