Hostages freed by Israel, what happened: from the blitz to the protests in Türkiye and Iran

The Israeli raid yesterday, June 8, which led to the release of four hostages who were in the hands of Hamas, left a long trail of controversy and official protests regarding the methods of the intervention. Turkey and Iran have condemned “the massacre of 210 Palestinians” in the Nuseirat camp, in the center of the Gaza Strip, which preceded the rescue operation of the four hostages. And even in the Jewish State there were demonstrations to ask for an agreement as soon as possible for the release of other citizens kidnapped by jihadists after the attack on 7 October 2023.

Turkey: “Another barbaric attack”

Turkey was among the first countries to condemn the Israeli operation. “With this latest barbaric attack, Israel has added another crime to the list of those it has committed in Gaza”, reads a statement from the Foreign Ministry in Ankara, which asks “the institutions responsible for maintaining peace and security international security, particularly the United Nations Security Council, to exercise their responsibility to put an end to these crimes by Israel, which is on trial before the International Court of Justice for violating its obligations under the Genocide Convention of 1948”.

Iran: “Horrible and shocking crimes”

After Turkey, Iran also strongly condemned Israel’s operation. “The horrific and shocking crimes of the Zionists in massacring hundreds of Palestinians, including women and children, in the Nuseirat camp in the Strip are the result of the inaction of responsible governments and international bodies, including the United Nations Security Council , faced with eight months of war crimes and violations of international humanitarian law by the occupying Israeli regime in Gaza,” said Tehran Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani, quoted by the agency Irna. According to the Iranian official, Europe and the United States are also “responsible” for what happened in Nuseirat, because they continued to supply weapons to Israel.

From the USA: “Congratulations, successful rescue”

However, the reaction of the United States is different. The US military Central Command (Centcom) congratulated Israel on the operation in Nuseirat which secured the release of the four hostages. “Congratulations to the Israeli security forces and the people of Israel on the successful rescue and return to the families of the four hostages kidnapped on October 7,” read Centcom’s post on its X account.

Protests in Israel: “Agreements found to free more hostages”

Also on , but only Israel’s enemies protested the casualties among Hamas terrorists and their accomplices, accusing Israel of war crimes.” But, explains Katz, “we wholeheartedly reject these accusations. We will continue to act with determination and force, in accordance with our right to self-defense, until all hostages are released and Hamas is defeated.” Although the raid was well received by the Israeli people, there were demonstrations to urge the government to find an agreement for the release of other people who had fallen into the hands of Hamas. The protests, which were held in many parts of the Jewish state, led to the arrest of 33 people and incidents. Several also called for the resignation of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The hostages freed

“The diamond is in our hands.” With this coded message, the Israeli special forces announced yesterday, June 8, that they had freed four hostages held by Hamas. After eight months of captivity, Noa Argamani (25 years old), Almog Meir (21 years old), Andrey Kozlov (27 years old) and Shlomi Ziv (40 years old) were freed (and alive). They had all been kidnapped at the Nova Festival, near the Beeri kibbutz, and were held captive by Hamas in two civilian buildings in the heart of the Nuseirat refugee camp, in the center of the Gaza Strip. Hamas called the Israeli military raid “a massacre” that left “210 Palestinians dead and 400 injured.” Islamic faction leader Ismail Haniyeh insisted that “the Palestinian people will not surrender and the resistance will continue to defend our rights in the face of this criminal enemy.” While President Abu Mazen called for a session of the UN Security Council to talk about the “bloody massacre carried out by the Israeli occupation forces in the Nuseirat camp”.

The story of the blitz

The joint operation between the IDF and Shin Bet began yesterday around 10am Italian time, announced shortly before by an unusual message from the army about an action underway in the Nuseirat camp. It was “a complex operation planned for several weeks, which took place under heavy enemy fire,” military spokesman Daniel Hagari said. “Fighters from the special units operated in two different buildings and we resorted to massive fire to protect our forces. The hostages were inside a civilian neighborhood, in an environment guarded by armed militiamen,” he added. The most critical moment of the action, the media later revealed, was when one of the vehicles carrying three of the hostages stopped while it was taking them to safety. To protect the vehicle, targeted by Hamas militiamen, the IDF engaged in a tough battle, opening fire with the support of the 98th division. It is here, according to the reconstruction, that the greatest number of Palestinian deaths, including civilians, were probably recorded in the refugee camp. The hostages, finally reunited, were taken out of Gaza by two helicopters and taken to the Tel HaShomer-Sheba hospital in Tel Aviv, where they are in conditions defined as “good”, even if worn out. Special forces commander Arnon Zamora, who was head of the rescue team, died in the clash with Hamas militiamen.

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