Israeli military says it has rescued a hostage abducted in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said Tuesday that it has rescued an Arab citizen of Israel who was among scores of people abducted in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

The military said Qaid Farhan Alkadi, 52, was rescued “in a complex operation in the southern Gaza Strip.”

Hamas-led militants abucted some 250 people in the Oct. 7 attack, in which some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed over 40,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials, who do not say how many were fighters. It has displaced 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people from their homes and caused heavy destruction across the besieged territory.

Hamas is still holding around 110 hostages, about a third of whom are believed to be dead. Most of the rest were released in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel during a cease-fire last November.

Israel has rescued a total of eight hostages, including in two operations that killed scores of Palestinians. Hamas says several hostages have been killed in Israeli airstrikes and failed rescue attempts.

The United States, Egypt and Qatar have spent months trying to negotiate an agreement in which the remaining hostages would be freed in exchange for a lasting cease-fire.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced intense criticism from families of the hostages and much of the Israeli public for not yet reaching a deal with Hamas to bring them home.

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