“Suddenly, I heard someone speaking Hebrew outside the door. I couldn’t believe it, I couldn’t believe it,” Alkadi, 52, recounted from an Israeli hospital during a phone call with the Israeli president as his family gathered around his bedside in a joyful reunion.
He was the eighth hostage rescued by Israeli forces since some 250 people were abducted in the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, and the first to be found alive underground.
Qaid Farhan Alkadi and the commander of the 162nd Division, Brigadier General Itzik Cohen, speak at the time of their rescue. Photo: Israeli Army
The rescue brought a rare moment of relief to Israelis after 10 months of war, but it was also a painful reminder that dozens of hostages remain held captive, amid ongoing and stalled negotiations for their release.
Alkadi expressed his gratitude during a call with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and urged his country's leaders to do everything possible to secure the release of the dozens of people still being held captive.
Alkadi was found in a tunnel in southern Gaza, where hostages were suspected of being held with militants and explosives. He had been held in several locations during his captivity, according to Israeli military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced that the rescue operation was part of a "bold and courageous operation" being conducted by the Israeli military deep inside the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli army said it had learned "lessons" from previous operations while rescuing Alkadi. Earlier in the conflict, Israeli troops had inadvertently shot and killed three hostages inside Gaza, mistaking them for militants.
Alkadi was one of eight members of Israel's Bedouin Arab minority group abducted on October 7th. He was working as a security guard at a packing plant in Kibbutz Magen when he was taken. He has two wives and is the father of 11 children.
Qaid Farhan Alkadi at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, Israel, on August 27, 2024. Photo: Israeli Government Press Office
The IDF has not said much about its plans to rescue Kaid Farhan Elkadi, but a recent operation resulted in the deaths of dozens of Palestinians. Israel believes that 108 hostages remain in Gaza and that about a third of them are dead.
A video released by the Israeli military shows Alkadi a few minutes after his rescue. Unshaven and wearing a white tank top, he is seen sitting and smiling at the soldiers before boarding a helicopter to the hospital. He appears thin, but officials describe his condition as stable.
Many members of his family gathered at the hospital in Beersheba, southern Israel, to welcome him home. One of his brothers held Alkadi's newborn son, a child born while he was imprisoned and who had never met his father, according to the brother.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also spoke with Alkadi by phone. He said Israel would rely on rescue operations and negotiations to bring the remaining hostages home. Alkadi reminded Prime Minister Netanyahu that “there are others waiting.”
Hamas says some hostages were killed in Israeli airstrikes. Israeli forces accidentally killed three Israeli hostages who escaped from captivity in December. Last week, Israeli forces also recovered the bodies of six hostages in southern Gaza.
Huy Hoang (according to AP, Reuters)
Source: https://www.congluan.vn/hanh-trinh-con-tin-israel-duoc-giai-cuu-after-326-days-of-detention-in-gaza-post309575.html
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